Whatever the Case May Be
by Evelien Michaels
Summary: How far will SVU go to fight the demons of Olivia's adopted daughter? chapter 12 up! EO
1. Now It's Personal

Law and Order: SVU FanFiction

Whatever the Case May Be

Chapter 1: Now it's Personal

"I pray you'll be alright, and watch us where we go. And tell us to be wise, in times when we don't know. Let this be a prayer, as we go away...lead us to a place, guide us with your grace, to a place where we'll be safe..."

TUESDAY DECEMBER 2

"Stabler, Benson, can I see you in my office?"  
Elliot and Olivia had started their own conversation a few minutes earlier, but they ceased their talking under the captain's command. They followed Captain Cragen down the hallway. Elliot held the door open for Olivia, who exchanged his gesture with a smile. The two of them seated themselves across from Cragen's mahogany desk chair.  
"What is it?" Olivia asked both concerned and excited for a new case. It was moments like this that made her life as adventurous as it was; this is what she lived for.  
"We've just received a call from 872-5443," Cragen stated, his eyes reverting to Olivia.  
"What...?" she questioned. Her face became pale like a ghost after hearing Cragen's statement.  
Elliot gave her a look of confusion. "What's wrong Liv?"  
Olivia became quiet and spoke in what seemed like a whisper. "Kristin..." she said wearily, a lump formed in her throat and literally gagged her. She slowly rose to her feet and bolted out the door. Elliot quickly followed after her.  
He opened the door quietly, so she wouldn't notice he was there. The sound of a phone hanging up was the first thing he heard; then he watched as she sat atop her desk, resting her forehead on the heels of her hands. She smoothed her palms over her face, already frustrated with the new case. This wasn't going to be like the others...this was going to be different; this was her case...now it was personal.  
"Hey," Elliot said sleepily, squatting down until his eyes were in line with hers.  
She didn't respond to him, physically or mentally. In a matter of minutes, her soul had been crushed. She felt like everything she had worked for was gone; gone for forever. She felt insanely hollow--however, she was wrong; she still had him and he wasn't going to leave her like this. He couldn't imagine it.  
"Liv," he whispered, rolling her name off his tongue. "It's going to be OK...they can't get you...I won't let them..." he gingerly took her hands and held them between his, "I'm here Liv, and I'm not going anywhere...ever..."

Olivia had been staring out the window for fifteen minutes when she finally saw a navy blue Jetta pull into the parking lot. She was relieved to hear the sounds of footsteps ascending the stairs beneath her. Then she let out a long sigh when she saw the figures of her neighbor, Mrs. Peterson and Kristin, her daughter appear in the doorway. Mrs. Peterson was carrying the ready-to-collapse girl down the hallway. Olivia tore past Elliot and took her daughter from Mrs. Peterson and into her arms. Kristin wasn't crying now, however, her eyes were red from wiping her eyes only moments before.  
Olivia put an arm around her shoulder and led her daughter into her office. She opened her closet door and stood on her tiptoes to reach the top shelf that held blankets. She grabbed a light pink one and wrapped it around Kristin's shoulders. "Is that better?" Olivia asked, taking a seat atop her big oak desk.  
Kristin sat down in front of her in a fluffy armchair. "Yeah..." she told her mother. Her eyes turned away from her mother and rested their gaze on her hands that were still shaking with fear. They all sat muted, in fact, not another word was spoken until a worried Elliot opened the door.  
He stuck his head in and saw the two of them sitting by Olivia's desk. "If you want me to leave, I understand."  
"No...it's fine," Kristin replied, her voice still shaking. The events of the last hour still replayed through her mind like a horror movie that continually terrified her. The worse part of the situation was the fact that she would have to retell the entire story over again; she would have to relive every minute of it. Then it hit her with sudden force-- her attacker was still out there; waiting.

"I was practicing my violin when I heard the window break," Kristin stated. She spoke as if she were a nervous girl giving a speech in front of her entire class. Her knees shook and banged together, her face became warm and pink, and to top it all off, her head was pounding with searing pain.  
"Then what happened honey?" Her mom asked her gently, trying to be as comforting as she possibly could be.  
"I stopped, but I didn't hear anything else...so I wandered out to the kitchen to get something to eat. Once again, I swore I heard footsteps and turned around abruptly, however, no one was there. Then someone grabbed me from behind and covered my mouth with their hand. It was really strange. Another person appeared out of nowhere...it was a woman with blond hair and brown eyes..."  
"Did she have any other distinctive features?" Detective Elliot Stabler questioned, who was now standing nearby.  
"She had a really high pitched voice, and a tattoo of what looked like a devil on her right bicep. She was about my height...so I guess she was about 5'7". The other man called her Angie."  
"What about the man who grabbed you?"  
"The man behind me was masked; I could only see his brown eyes. He had a low voice...'Angie' called him Jeff...he's about 6'4" I guess...just a little taller than you, Mr. Stabler."  
"You can call me Elliot," he said in a friendly manner, trying to lighten the mood. He swallowed and continued, "I know this is scary to think about Kristin, but you need to tell us what happened today."  
Kristin's lip quivered, but she answered him, hoping to hide her obvious fear. "I tried to scream, but I couldn't...I kicked the man and ran for the door, although I knew I wouldn't get far...she reached for my hoodie and threw me against the wall...I began to feel nauseous, but I could still hear the two of them clearly. He was having second thoughts about their plan...she pulled me to my feet and held a knife to my throat...she said she would kill me if I tried to fight back or call for help...she then took me and pushed me down to the floor. I smacked my ribs on the coffee table and my head hit the floor with such force that I blacked out. The next thing I remember was seeing that mask...and feeling someone holding down my legs...that's when I realized...I...I..."  
"Kris, it's OK," Olivia assured her taking her hands and holding them between hers. "You're doing a great job..." she added, and Elliot nodded with reassurance.  
"I realized," she started in a small childlike voice, "that I wasn't...I wasn't..." Elliot and Olivia exchanged worried glances; they knew what she was going to say, but neither of them expected this could happen to someone so close to them. "I can't do this..." she finally said, as all the frightening memories poured back through her body, and choked her to tears. Olivia took her daughter into her arms and tried to give her a sense of security and protection, but the damage had already been done. The only thing she could do was catch the people responsible for this.

The three of them arrived at the doctor's office as quickly as they could. The pain came to Kristin and hit her like a freight train; the sensation literally blew her off her feet. She knew several of her bones had to be broken, and her muscles ached with immense soreness.  
They were seen almost immediately by Dr. Yei, the mother of one of Kristin's friends. She was glad that the doctor was both a female and someone she knew; she wanted this experience to be as painless as possible.  
Dr.Yei was as nice to Kristin as she could be. There were other times she had dealt with rape victims, and she learned from previous interactions how to deal with these patients. She took several x-rays to see which bones were broken during her attack. One showed three fingers-- two on her left hand and one on the right-- were fractured. The other displayed that two toes on her right foot were also broken. The bruises from the attack, most of them rather large, covered the majority of her neck, ribs, and vaginal areas. Her left wrist was also swollen, as well as her right ankle, which was slightly sprained. The entire process took about three hours out of their already hectic day.  
On the car ride back to the precinct, Kristin and Olivia were quiet. Elliot had tried to add some life to the trip, but it seemed that neither of them wanted to respond. Kristin wasn't crying anymore, but she didn't feel like speaking. Olivia wore an expression that scared Elliot; she looked ready to kill.  
Olivia and Elliot helped support the weak Kristin through the hallway until they met up with Casey, who came to see Olivia after hearing what happened. "Hey," Casey said, "Olivia I'm so sorry about this whole thing...it really sucks." Casey felt a terrible pang of sorrow for her friend.  
Olivia hugged Casey and asked her a simple question, "Can Kris stay here with you? Elliot and I need to go back to my appar...I mean the crime sce...oh you know what I mean..."

Olivia rummaged through her purse until she successfully located her key ring. After fumbling to find the right one, she shoved the gold key into the keyhole and turned it to the right. She heard a clicking sound, then pulled it out and stuck it back in her bag. She flung open the door, silently scanning the area. Elliot watched her with care, until she noticed he was staring at her. "Let's just do this, OK?" she told him, already wiped out from the anxiety she had been feeling all day long.  
The first thing they saw was the blood on the wall, like Kristin had described. Elliot carefully collected a sample of it to send to the lab, though he knew it was Kristin's. They also spotted the coffee table, which had been moved slightly (probably from the fall) and had a small trace of blood on the edge of it. Then there was the rug, which had its own considerable amount of blood stained with in the fibers. It was all Kristin's blood, for she was the only one who suffered, but it wouldn't stay that way...once they caught her attackers, she wouldn't be the only one in pain.  
They moved on to Kristin's bedroom, which terrified Olivia. She could see the scenes of her daughter's attack playing through her mind. She felt her pain, her struggle to break free. This room of sea-foam green would forever haunt the two of them; she knew it from the moment she stepped through the doorway.  
Her eyes drifted to the bedspread that had been ripped in the struggle; she also found that her lamp had been knocked off the night stand. When she bent over to put it back in its place, she saw something on the night stand-- fresh prints...hopefully the perpetrator's. This was the only time she actually was happy that her daughter did not dust her room every week like she was supposed to. Elliot also found a small section of someone's shirt stuck in between the two closet doors. Just a few tests stood in their way of finding out just whom "Angie" and "Jeff" were. But was this evidence enough?  
Elliot continuously watched Olivia through his sky blue eyes. He asked her several times if she was OK, but he received no response. She seldom said a word the entire forty-five minutes they were there. A few times, she caught his eyes lingering over her; she quickly turned away though, so he couldn't see the walls of water building in her eyes. The window blinds shattered the sunlight, but Elliot could still see the silver reflected in her chocolate eyes. She noticed he was still watching her when her tears began to fall gently down her cheeks. He gingerly took hold of her wrist, and brought her crying body softly into his arms. Tears streamed down her face and plummeted silently onto his jacket.

"So what did you find?" Elliot asked Dr. George Huang. Olivia had gone to interview her neighbor, Mrs. Peterson, and he had agreed that he would see what George could do with the evidence.  
"Yeah, I think you'll be happy with what I found," Dr. Huang smiled.  
"Impress me George."  
"The prints on the night stand belong to a male, Jeffery Meyers; the cloth from a woman, Angela Meyers."  
"Relatives...?"  
"Married, actually..."  
"A criminal couple...how charming..."

She went through the door to Elliot and her office, and found that Mrs. Peterson had already been waiting there. Olivia shut the door and inhaled deeply through her mouth, attempting to calm herself down. She sat down across from the witness; her hands scrambled around the desk at rapid pace, searching for her paperwork and a pen. At last she had located her materials and had somewhat calmed herself down.  
"Mrs. Peterson, Kristin said that she came to your apartment after her attack, I need to know if she told you anything..."  
"Ms. Benson...your daughter was in a state of shock...she hardly said a word...she told me she had been badly beaten, but managed to reach my door. I carried her inside and immediately called your office...she was crying the entire time...she really didn't say anything else..."  
"Did she say anything about her attackers?"  
"Ms. Benson, I'm sorry, but I really don't think I can help you very much..."  
"It's OK, thanks for coming in. You can go home now, if you'd like."  
"I'm sorry I wasn't of any help..."  
"It's OK," Olivia repeated, leading Mrs. Peterson out the door. She sat back down in her desk chair and tipped her head backward, letting out a long, heavy sigh. She never slept during a major case, and this one was no different. In fact, this time she was going to work harder because this was her daughter, her life...nothing was going to stop her.

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 3

"Hey Livie," Casey was in an overly optimistic manner, "guess what?" she added, excited to share her news.  
"What is it Case?" she asked, both tired and annoyed.  
"We've got it!" she exclaimed.  
"Did I miss something?" Olivia asked confused.  
"The search warrant for Jeff and Angie Meyers."

Detectives Odafin Tutuola and John Munch pounded on apartment 182 in Manhattan's Elmsford Apartment Building. There was no answer at the door, so they decided to enter anyway. "Special Victims Unit, we have a warrant!" Fin shouted to what seemed like an empty apartment.  
The place was a mess: papers thrown across the floor, clothes lay over furniture as well as on the carpet, and garbage poured out of the trash can. They slowly wandered through the kitchen and living room before hearing noises coming from the bedroom. The two detectives silently crept up to the door, listening to the noises inside. Munch instantly recognized the sounds of a female and a male voice. They burst open the door and found the two in bed. "Angela and Jeffery Meyers, you're under arrest for violating Article 32 Section 25, you'll be coming with us. Oh and...put some clothes on..."

Olivia was waiting for the suspects in the Interrogation Room. Her hands were sweating and her heart skipped a few beats. She found that she had a hard time breathing. She was so close to catching her daughter's attackers; however, she couldn't find a way to settle herself. Her head popped up when the door opened. Elliot first entered the room.  
"You want me to do this?" he asked her, concerned about the way she would handle the interview. Olivia could control her actions, unlike Elliot who usually over re-acted.  
"We can do it together..." she stated wearily.  
"OK, if you're sure about this, but Liv I really..."  
"El, I'm gonna be alright."  
The two suspects entered the room and were seated across from Elliot and Olivia. She glared at the two as they took their seats. They both gave the detectives an "I-don't-give-a-shit" expression. Their nonchalant attitudes boiled Olivia's blood, but she tried to simmer herself down. She couldn't lose it; she had to prove they were guilty first.  
"So, where exactly were you last night Mr. and Mrs. Meyers?" Elliot questioned.  
"We were at home, obviously," Angie told them. The two suspects were already acting like they were bored with the detectives.  
"Doing what exactly?" Olivia asked.  
"What do you think we were doing?" Jeff said smartly. Their attitudes were also getting to Olivia. She couldn't hold herself back much longer.  
"Do you recognize this girl?" Elliot held up a picture of Kristin that had been taken at the hospital. Her body was covered in disgusting purple bruises, and her eyes were closed.  
"No," Angie started, "we've never seen her."  
"Is she dead?" Jeff inquired.  
"Maybe this will bring back more memories:" Elliot showed them another picture of Kristin. This one, however, was before the attack. Kristin was smiling and unharmed.  
Angie shook her head, "Never seen her," she repeated her statement again.  
Olivia rose to her feet and leaned over the table, staring into Angie's eyes, then Jeff's. "Oh really...well I guess that's it then..." She stood up straight and began to pace around the room. She stopped on the other side of the table; bending over she whispered, "You know what, usually I'm the calm one when it come to cases like this, but...YOU RAPED AND TORTURED A LITTLE GIRL...MY LITTLE GIRL...YOU COULD HAVE FUCKING KILLED HER TOO IF SHE DIDN'T GET AWAY! YOU PEOPLE ARE SICK!" she shouted furiously in their faces. "AND IF IT WERE UP TO ME, YOU WOULD BE FUCKING DEAD BY NOW! HELL, IF I HAD MY GUN ON ME I'D..."  
"Liv," Elliot said, grabbing her arm, "let's step outside for a moment..."  
Olivia watched Angie and Jeff through the glass window. Her eyes were fixated on the two criminals. Elliot stood next to her, studying her inattentively. "What happened in there."  
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lost control like that...but those people hurt my daughter; I couldn't let them get away with what they did."  
"I understand..."  
"Why don't we let Fin and Munch finish with them?" Cragen added.  
"Alright..." she responded.  
"Oh and Olivia..." Cragen started.  
"Yeah..."  
"You used your 'Get out of Jail Free Card' on this one...and I've got news for you, there's only one in the pack." Cragen stated before leaving the two detectives alone by the glass window.  
"Don't worry about them," Elliot told her gently, as Munch and Fin entered the Interrogation room from the corner of his eye.

Olivia had been sitting in her office with Elliot, when her phone began to ring. "Special Victims Unit, this is Benson."  
"We've got a little problem Olivia," Dr. Huang stated.  
"What do you mean?" she asked. Now what was wrong? Everything had been taking a turn for the worse that day. How could this situation get anymore complicated?  
"Kristin wasn't uh...protected...we um...ran some tests...and it looks like Angie and Jeff weren't the only ones there this morning."  
"We'll be right over," she told him, looking up at Elliot.

Kristin soon realized that she was back in the hospital, where she had been only hours ago. This time, Dr. Huang was going to help her instead of Dr. Yei. She didn't like the idea of having a male doctor, especially after what had happened today, but she felt secure with her mother and Elliot in the same room. Dr. Huang was, after all, part of the team her mom belonged to, so maybe she could trust him...  
"So why don't you just tell us why you brought us here..." Elliot stated to George. Their search for the perpetrator had only just begun, but he was already exhausted. The main reason he felt this way was not because the case was physically wearing him out, but the fact that he had spent the entire day worrying about Olivia. As his thoughts played in his mind, he looked over at Olivia, who appeared just as worn out as he was.  
"The DNA taken from Kristin," George started, placing a blowup picture of a DNA molecule on the white board beside him, "doesn't match either of our suspects," he concluded, joining the other picture with two others; one from Jeff and one from Angie.  
"So who's is it then?" Olivia asked rising to her feet. The case was getting more and more complicated. Many were difficult, but none of them had ever made her as tired as this one did.  
"The DNA sample belongs to twenty-year old; Jose Planco...according to the evidence file collected from the crime scene, there is no sign that Planco was even there that day."  
"So...what are you saying?" Olivia questioned.  
"I'm saying there's a possibility that Planco could have raped her days before we got the phone call..."  
"UGH!" Olivia angrily sighed in response. She pressed the palms of her hands into her forehead and deeply inhaled. "Can I talk to Kristin...alone please...?"

She was sitting at her desk, her feet on the top of the table, hands folded across her chest; she was not happy about what George had found out only minutes later. Jose had to have been in her apartment earlier this morning. She would not let herself believe that Kristin was like other teenagers these days. Was it really possible that she didn't know her daughter anymore? Could she really be hiding something from her?  
Kristin cracked open the door slowly. "Sit down..." Olivia ordered.  
Kristin silently flopped down into the chair across from her mother. "What's up?"  
Olivia lifted her legs off the desk and turned her chair to face her daughter. "Did you ever..." she started, "Kristin have you..."  
"Mom, what is it?"  
"Have you ever done anything behind my back...anything that would really upset me..."  
"I don't know what you're talking about."  
"Kristin, have you ever had sexual relations...and, and didn't tell me about it?" Olivia stumbled over her words, afraid of the answer she would receive in response; she didn't want her daughter to be like the others.  
"Mom," she replied, almost in a whisper, "I would never do anything like that...I promise..."  
"Kristin...I'm sorry," she stated, apologetically, "come here." She stood up, wrapping an arm around her daughter and leading her out the door.

THURSDAY DECEMBER 4th

Elliot woke up and drove to the precinct before the sun was even up. The moon's milky white light still flooded the sky above him, guiding him through the midnight black all around him. Street lamps gave off a dim ambience along the side of the road. Silence surrounded him; the only audible sound was the soft hum of his car inching through the city.  
He skidded to a stop in front of the office building. He climbed the stairs to the precinct; his footsteps echoing within the walls. His pace quickened as he reached the third floor. Anxiety took the best of him, and forced him to walk faster, until he was almost jogging through the hallway. He opened the door, literally stopping in his tracks to catch his breath.  
He stood up and turned on the lights, which flickered several times before turning completely on. Half-blinded by the bright lights, he wearily groped for the doorknob to the office he shared with Olivia.  
"What the hell...?" He was shocked to find Olivia asleep in her desk chair. They both stayed late last night to work on Kristin's case, but he left first. She told him that she was going to head out shortly after him, but he should have known that she wasn't going to leave unless someone physically took her home. She always worked hard on a case, hardly sleeping until she was finished.  
She had told him to take Kristin to Mrs. Peterson's until she came home, which also should have proved to be a hint. He shouldn't have let her stay here alone; in his mind he was slapping himself across the face. How could he be so stupid?  
Across the room, Olivia was squirming in her seat, trying to find another comfortable position. He stood in the shadows watching her chest rising and falling. Her lips were slightly parted, her hair was a mess, and several times he swore he heard her snoring, which made him gently chuckle. There was still something about her that seemed almost irresistible. Even when she was snoring and exhausted, her beauty was captivating. His eyes watched her with great interest and he asked himself again, what did he see in her that constantly held his attention? Even Kathy hadn't made him feel that way.  
She tipped back too far in her chair, knocking herself on to the floor. Elliot was quickly aroused from his daydream, and rushed to her side. "O my god, are you ok Liv?" he asked her greatly concerned. He offered her his hand and helped her to her feet.  
"Well I'm awake now," she stated sarcastically with a weak smile. "Oh..." she moaned putting a hand on her head.  
"Liv..." he started, placing a hand on her cheek, "I told you to go home."  
"I know, I know."  
"Look at you Liv...you're a mess."  
"Thanks, I feel so much better," her headache had started to ease, and she had just started to realize how close the two of them were. Inches separated her face from his; she could feel his breath on her neck, his hand warm on her face. They had their share of awkward moments, but never could she remember being this close to him.  
Before she could think she gingerly took hold of his wrist, feeling his gaze resting on her face. "El..." she whispered, focusing her chocolate eyes on his blue ones. She didn't know what to do. Part of her wanted something to happen, but the rest of her knew that they could be in serious trouble if somebody found them like this. She reluctantly made up her mind. "El...Cragen's going to be here any minute now..."  
"Right..." he responded, turning his head away from her's and slowly pulling his hand away.  
He reached for the notes that were scattered across the desk. He quickly shuffled them into piles according to what type of information the held. Olivia was still standing against the wall watching him. She knew he was only pretending to be absorbed in his work; she had officially blown her chance. Did it have to be over though?  
"Elliot...I'm sorry..."  
"For what?" he asked still reflecting over separating files.  
She sighed deeply and walked over beside him, staring over his shoulder, watching his eyes move across the papers. He knew she was staring at him; he wanted to say something. He wanted to tell her how she made him feel, but he kept to himself.  
"Hello? Elliot? Olivia?" A voice called from a distance. Cragen had arrived just like Olivia had predicted.  
"Be right there," Olivia replied to the Captain. Then to Elliot she said, "Thanks...for everything..." She gave him a smile and kissed his cheek softly before heading out the door.

"So, what are we looking at here?" Olivia was still a little dizzy from the fall, but she was more than ready to beginning working. This morning had been strange enough without the case; her encounter with Elliot had been rather awkward, and yet she wished that Cragen had been late. She could only imagine what may have happened if he had arrived just ten minutes later. 'Elliot doesn't feel that way about you,' she had told herself, but what if he did? 'Oh please... life's nothing like that...'

Her life had been a series of ups and downs, which altered the way she looked at life, especially when it came to love.  
"First the good news; we've gotten some information on Jose Planco...and we may have a slight problem..."  
"Now what is it?"  
"Records say that Planco died 5 years ago in a car crash..."  
"So we're cold...damn it..."  
"I don't know if it's exactly a dead end though...this guy is still out there...he may not be 'Jose Planco' anymore, but he's there..."  
"So how to we go about finding him?"  
"I think a little chat with Angie and Jeff could lead us in the right direction..."  
"So what's the bad news?"  
"Angie and Jeff were released last night."  
"What? Why?"  
"Fin and Munch arrested them for violating Article 32..."  
"And they didn't actually rape her..."  
"Jose did...so the only thing we can do now is find them."  
"Right...ELLIOT!"  
Elliot stuck his head out of the office, "What?"  
"Let's go," she smirked.  
Elliot got up off his chair, "Right behind you."

They found themselves staring once again at the Elmsford Apartment Building. They climbed the stairs in silence, anxiety floating through their bodies. Olivia felt her skin warming up; heat rose to her cheeks with step she took.  
Alas, they were standing in front of apartment 182. They were going to find out where Jose was; Angie and Jeff would tell them, they had to tell them, and when they did, Jose would finally be in jail where he belongs.  
She grasped the doorknob with a shaky hand and found that the door was locked. She looked at her partner and silently nodded before kicking open the door. The two of them stared through the doorway as the door swung open; they couldn't believe what they were seeing, what they saw was unbelievable. "No...no...this isn't possible..." Olivia whispered to Elliot. "This is fair! This is fair Elliot," she cried, half screaming.  
"What are we going to do now...?" Elliot asked speechless at the sight of all the blood around them. "I guess I'll call Cragen..."  
"Yeah...I guess..."  
Their only lead on the case had been shattered or slaughtered rather. Jose had to have killed them; he was the only one with a motive, for now at least. Olivia was disgusting by the work of this sick man. The Meyers' bodies lie motionless on the floor, another case of R D K; rape, dismembered, killed. Jose had done all three; the rape of Kristin Benson, then the dismemberment of the Meyers' fingers, and then their tragic deaths, probably caused by a knife or another alike object. Blood was everywhere, even more than there was in Olivia's own apartment. Angie had bled out on the couch, her blood staining the old piece of furniture and the rug underneath it. Her fingers, which lay scattered across the room, had left their own trials of blood throughout the wood flooring and beige carpet. His body was as messy if not messier than hers. There was evidence he had been dragged through the small apartment before being slammed in between the screen door of the balcony. His body was a mangled mess, torn almost in half by the unfortunate accident.  
Olivia heavily dropped her shoulders and effortlessly sat down in the chair across from Angie Meyer's body. She stared at the woman, disgust on her face. "She had it comin..." she said to herself. After all she did hurt her daughter...if Jose hadn't done it, she would have. "I wouldn't murder her," she whispered, just loud enough to hear.  
"What?" Elliot had been on the phone with Cragen, telling him about the roadblock in their quest for solving this case. He heard Olivia says something as he hung up the phone, but he wasn't sure what it was. He slowly walked around the blood stains and came to her side. "You OK?" he asked staring over her shoulder.  
"Yeah...yeah I'm fine..." she told him, rising to her feet. "Let's just get out of here."  
"OK that's fine...we'll just let Munch and Fin finish this up." He led the way through the maze around the blood, and then out the door.  
She shut the door behind her and deeply sighed. "I'm so glad that's over…"  
"Yeah," Elliot chuckled, "I can tell." He replied opening the car door for her.

She nodded and smiled before taking a seat on the passenger's side.  
The car ride back to the precinct was rather quiet. Olivia fell asleep after only five minutes of Elliot's driving. His eyes had a hard time staying on the road. Her head was resting against the window, her body was curled up uncomfortably, like a cat, and she was softly shaking in her seat. Elliot stopped at the traffic light and draped his jacket across her. When the light turned green, he took a right and followed the setting sun back to the precinct.

"Olivia, Elliot, what happened?"

Elliot took Cragen's arm and pulled him aside, "Listen, we found Angie and Jeff," he whispered.

"OK…"

"They're dead Don…there's blood everywhere."

"Oh…"

"Liv just…freaked out…we couldn't stay there…"

"I understand…we'll just wait until Munch and Fin get back."

"Let's hope they find something."

"I have an idea," Olivia said, joining the two of them. She casually sat down in her desk, making the two men wait for her response.

"Well let's hear it Benson," Cragen was impatient and Olivia loved it. She enjoyed watching them almost beg for her to tell them.

"I say we go through the Meyers' phone records and see what we find. I suggest we call Munch and Fin to make sure they look for any mail from 'Jose,' that includes the internet… anything that could possibly help us find this guy." Olivia was surprised they hadn't already thought of this before. It wasn't like she was coming up with something they've never dealt with before. She propped her feet on top of her desk. "I'll get a start on with the phone line."

"Yeah…Elliot you call Munch, I'll check up on the Meyers' bank records to see if they made any 'unexpected' big deposits."

"Hey Elliot, look at this," Olivia called to him, breaking the silence that had been going on for a half an hour at least. They were all working hard to find any information suggesting who "Jose" could really be. Olivia finally found something interesting in the Meyers' phone line that could possibly support their case.

"What'd you find?" Elliot asked, happy that she was having some success. Elliot called Munch to tell him to search through any mail they could find back at the apartment, but other than that, Olivia and Cragen took charge down at the precinct.

"Four calls to Diego Rivera on December 1st, the day before the rape. One at 3 AM, another at 6 AM, then 4 PM, and finally 11 PM. Sounds like this is our guy, don't you think?"

"I'd say so… what were the conversations about?"

"Let's see…. 'I don't know about this man, we could get caught…' 'No we're gonna do this, you hear me.' 'I have to agree with Jeff, I don't think this is a good idea either…' 'Listen to me bitch, we're gonna do this or I'ma come to your house and make your live a living hell.'"

"Sounds like Angie and Jeff didn't want to go along with it."

"Yeah, seems like Diego was willing to take it out on them too."

"Were the calls long enough to trace?"

"Um, let's see… yeah. They were all from a payphone outside their apartment to a warehouse on 34th Street. Diego's workplace most likely…what do you think?"

"I think we better go." Elliot smiled down at Olivia, taking her hands and pulling her up off her chair. "I think we've got him Cragen. Make sure we have backup, this guy's not going anywhere without a fight."

"Just watch yourself; I'll be behind you the whole time." Cragen replied. "I'll tell Munch and Fin to get down here too. Oh, and have fun."

Elliot winked, "You know we will."

Olivia and Elliot ran down the stairs, smiles spread across their faces. They hustled into their police car and started the journey to 34th Street. Olivia took Elliot's hand in hers, "Are you ready for this?"

He laughed, "Bring it on."

"I can't wait to see what kind of tricks this guy's gonna pull," she declared, as the two of them got out of the police car, "He seems like a real nutcase."

"Oh I don't know… he'll probably just fire a few shots at a certain policewoman, and then he'll run away like an ass until the other policeman comes to her rescue and kills the bastard." He replied chuckling.

"Or maybe the policeman will trip and get shot, and the woman will end up chasing after the jerk with a baseball bat." She affirmed, playfully punching him in the arm.

"Olivia, Elliot, you there?" A muffled voice came from Elliot's walkie-talkie. "Hello? Can you hear me?"

"Yeah we hear you Fin, we're ready and in position," Elliot answered.

"Just tell us when… we got your back on this one."

"OK, we're going in."

They jogged up to the warehouse as quietly as they could. The warehouse was a surprisingly small building, in the middle of a huge construction yard. Red-orange dirt surrounded the police squad, and dust clouds shielded Elliot and Olivia's vision as they came closer and closer to their destination.

"I'll go around back," Olivia told Elliot, "you can take the front entrance."

"I don't think that's a good idea, we should stay together."

"OK, let's go then." She grabbed his arm and led him around to the rear of the building where they could sneak in unnoticed. Olivia was focused, Elliot could hear her breathing get faster and assumed her heart rate was also accelerating. He was also responding in the same manner; they both knew that this was it. They would finally catch this guy and lock him up where he belonged.

They opened the small door that lead into the storage room and quietly entered the building. "We're in," Olivia whispered to the rest of the squad. She pulled out the picture of Diego that they found by researching their database and opened the door just enough to spy on the workers.

"I think that's him…" Elliot stated as softly as he could.

"Munch, the suspect is in sight…we're preparing to move in. Get the squad ready…this is it." Olivia radioed back to the rest of the team.

They waited only a minute, but it felt like eternity to them. Soon Diego was in arm's reach of the officers. Elliot jumped the gun and burst out of the storage room, lunging at the man.

Diego saw him and took off toward the front of the building, shoving over other workers and anything else in his path.

"Suspect is on the run and heading for the exit! We need backup, I repeat we need backup!"

"We hear you Olivia, we're on it."

Elliot tore after Diego, trying to keep up with the man and dodging around the debris in his path. Diego ripped the door open and ran into the sunlight, only to find that he was surrounded by cop cars. Elliot took the liberty off cuffing the man, who tried to break free as he did so. "Diego Rivera, you are under arrest for rape in the second degree as well as murder in the first degree. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law. You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be given to you…."

MONDAY DECEMBER 8

"Has the jury reached a verdict?"

"We have your Honor."

"And for the charge of murder in the first degree how do you find?"

"We find the defendant guilty."

"And for the account of rape in the second degree how do you find?"

"We find the defendant…..guilty."

"Great job today Casey," Olivia said, congratulating her friend.

"I'm just glad the two of you can go home and sleep tonight, knowing that this is all over." Casey replied hugging Olivia.

"Yeah I'm looking forward to it."

"Hey mom," Kristin called racing towards her mother.

"You did an awesome job on the stand today kid," Casey told her.

"Omigosh, I was so nervous," Kristin stated with a smile.

"Well we all get like that, don't we Casey?" Olivia responded pulling her daughter close to her.

"Yeah…but anyway…I think it's time you go and get some rest Livie, you look like you could use a little beauty sleep."

"Thanks, I'll enjoy it…"

"Liv!" Elliot shouted from the end of the hallway.

"Hey," she said turning around to face him.

"I wanted to know if I could treat the two of you out to dinner."

"That would be nice," Olivia told him smiling.

They walked out of the courtroom, all three of them smiling. Kristin waved to Casey as she got into Elliot's car. Casey beamed and waved back to them as the car sped away. It was over now, all behind them. Kristin was safe, and the man who hurt her was locked away. Everything was going to be alright.


	2. Two for the Price of One

Law and Order: SVU Fanfiction

WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE

Chapter 2: Two for the Price of One

A/N: I don't want to confuse anyone or anything, but I've decided to change this fic from third person to first person. Like my dear friend K-C says, "It's sooo much easier, because you can hear the person's thoughts and feelings." Thanks K-C

SUNDAY DECEMBER 14

OLIVIA'S POV:

I arrived at the corner of 5th Avenue and 42nd Street shortly after 6 AM in a yellow cab ( I know it's strange for me to be in a cab, but I was desperate.) Unfortunately, I had to wake Kristin up too, and brought her along with me. It has been less than a week since her attacker has been accused guilty, and I'm still not feeling very trusting towards people in this city.  
I'm not really sure if I'm in the mood for solving crimes this morning, but I guess I really don't have any choice. The first thing I saw when we reached our destination was the bright neon police tape that surrounded the sidewalk of a small townhouse on 5th Avenue. I sighed deeply and paid the cab driver $10.50 for our trip downtown, then grabbed Kristin and found my way through the crowd of people.  
"Hey Liv...Kristin. Kristin? What are you doing here?" Elliot asked. He seemed to be more tired and less aware of his surroundings than Kristin was.  
"Yeah, I took her along...I didn't...her...alone..." I fumbled over my words embarrassed by those staring at me.  
"Liv, it's okay I understand...why don't we let her sleep in my car, alright?"  
"Okay..." I gave Kristin's hand to Elliot. By now she was barely standing on her own feet and needed someone to lean on. "So what happened here Cragen?"  
"Come on, I'll show you inside," Cragen told me after Elliot returned from his car.

Our footsteps were heavy on the staircase. We walked quickly to the second floor following Cragen, not knowing what to expect. There were two rooms on the top floor; a pink and green bedroom with three small beds, and a tiny bathroom with only a toilet and sink. The first thing my eyes did see, however, was the bedroom. There was a small body lying on the ground, face down at the end of a blue bed spotted with white polka-dots. Another body was dangling off another bed, still breathing.  
"Cragen...I think that girl is still breathing!" I shouted, rushing over to the girl. I rolled up my sleeve and placed two fingers along the side of her neck. "I've got a pulse!" I yelled over to my fellow squad members. "Stay with me...stay with me," I whispered to the young girl, who couldn't be more than five years old…poor thing…  
"Who called the police anyway?" Elliot asked. That was a good question. I'm not sure if the neighbors could have heard them, and one of these two girls certainly didn't call us...so who did?  
"She said her name was Laura...over there...in the closet..." he answered quietly. I turned my head to see who he was talking about and saw a small girl crouched in a ball surrounded by heaps of clothing that had fallen off their hangers.

I slowly approached her, then knelt beside her and said, "Hi, my name's Olivia. What's your's?" This was the way I usually dealt with the younger victims. I wanted to make them feel as comfortable as they possibly could. She did not answer me, which wasn't unusual because of what had happened, but most other victims did at least answer me with their name. "I'm not going to hurt you sweetie...do want to take my hand?" I held my hand out to her with a smile. She lifted her head with difficulty, and reluctantly took my hand. I helped her rise to her feet and led her down the stairs, shielding her from the horrible scene that was most likely already playing through her mind.  
I walked her to an ambulance for medical evaluation, though she didn't seem to have severe injuries like the others in her house. I watched the small girl as nurses towered over her, swarming her with questions, poking her with needles, taking her blood pressure, looking into her ears and eyes, and pulling her arms and legs in all directions. She looked confused, frightened, almost like she didn't understand what they were telling her. Maybe she didn't...it was possible that she didn't even speak English. After all, the only thing she said on the phone was "Help me, help me please!"  
After the "wildfire" was over, I decided to check on the little girl. I talked to her from a distance, but she still wouldn't look at me, "Are you okay?" I asked her gently. I waited patiently a few moments, but then decided that the best thing to get her to speak was to let Kristin talk to her. It seems like it's always so much easier when you speak to someone your own age.  
I found Elliot's car parked further down 42nd Street and opened the back door using the key Elliot had given me about a year after we became partners. I tapped on her shoulder gently and woke her, hoping she wasn't startled. "Kris...Kris can you do me a favor?"  
She opened her eyes slowly, "What...? Oh, yeah sure mom...what is it?"   
"I need you to baby-sit..? Well, there's this little girl who's been through a heck of a night...you can imagine..."  
"Yes I can..."  
"She won't respond to me...I was thinking that maybe she would talk to you..."  
"Ok...anything to help..."  
"Come on...I'll lead you to her." I took her hand as she sleepily stretched her legs and got out of the car.

We walked in silence back over to the ambulance, where I introduced Laura to Kristin. "Laura, this is my daughter, Kristin…"

"Hi Laura…you can talk to me…I understand what you're going through…" Kristin's words trailed off into a whisper.

"I'll leave the two of you alone…I need to go back inside…"

"Okay…mom…"

"Yeah?"

"Be careful…"

"So what did you get out of our witness?" Cragen asked me, as he studied the body of the smaller victim.

"She wouldn't talk to me…Kristin's talking to her now…"

"Kristin?"

"Yeah…I thought it would be easier for Laura. What'd you find?"

"Elle," Elliot said pointing to the body of the girl Cragen was studying, "was stabbed once from behind. She fell down on her bed like so, and has been there ever since. Now her sister, Jane, was shot in the chest, and killed instantly. This is how I see it: our suspect goes upstairs, Elle probably screams, so he grabs her and stabs her in the back. Then Jane tries to help her younger sister and he turns around and shoots her."

"But that still doesn't explain one thing…" I added to Elliot's statement.

"What's that?" he questioned.

"How's Laura involved in all this?" Cragen answered for me.

"Judging by the bruises the nurses found in the medical evaluation, it's possible that she was thrown into the closet before our guy stabbed little Elle." I answered. How could that be true though? Wouldn't the perp want her dead too?

"So why did he kill Elle and Jane, but not Laura?" Elliot questioned, completely puzzled. He watched as a small stretcher lifted the now lifeless body of Elle off the ground. As her body was being carried carefully down the stairs, I looked at him clearly seeing the remorse we were all feeling in his eyes.

"What are you two waiting for? Let tear this place apart!" Cragen ordered.

I don't know how long we had been standing there in silence, but we were wasting our time. The sooner we found any leads, the closer we would be to helping a poor young terrified girl.

Elliot was the first to find something…a 9mm with five rounds still inside the cartridge. The gun hadn't been wiped clean, which wasn't odd because the perp most likely didn't have enough time to do the job carefully. However, I can't believe they wouldn't have taken the gun with them. It would take a lot less work to find them if we already had the gun that killed her.

Our next find was the knife, although that weapon had been cleaned. Both weapons would be sent to forensics right away, but I had a feeling that this wasn't the end. There was something else we were supposed to find.

I took pictures of the blood patterns so we could figure out exactly how the crime took place, but I knew there was something else. The feeling was horrible. It started in my stomach, seizing my body with anxiety as I frantically scanned the room with my eyes. Then it worked up through my chest, making my heart pound faster and faster, until it finally reached my head. I felt nauseated, as if I could pass out cold any minute now. I dropped to my hands and knees looking underneath beds, nightstands, anything in my path. After Cragen gave us permission to rustle around with the crime scene, I literally began tearing the place apart looking for this clue I knew had to be there. I threw things off the nightstand, ripped the covers off the bed, and looked through all the clothes in the closet, frantic to find my clue. It had to be there…it just had to be.

"Hey! Watch it Liv!" Elliot dodged the flying objects, almost getting hit by a few pairs of jeans I had flung out of the closet. "You alright?"

I didn't look at him, but continued my search around the small bedroom. I moved over to Elle's bed, the only one still untouched and started to explore. Her little pink and green mattress was pulled down along with the rest of her baby pink blankets. I still could find it, but I was close. I could feel something in my throat start to choke me inside; the burning sensation in my chest grew stronger.

"Liv stop…" Elliot sat beside me and grabbed my shoulders, lightly shaking me. "What the heck's gotten into you?"

"El…it's right here…I know it is…" I was getting frustrated, he could tell. It's funny how he always knows what's going on with me. My mind wandered off for a moment asking itself if I was really that readable.

"Liv just calm down…"

"I'm supposed to find something…it should be right here!" I angrily pounded my fist on top of Elle's bed. I felt Cragen, Munch, and Fin turn their heads, their eyes starting at me. I saw Elliot shake his head at them, letting them know everything was alright. My eyes widened…I knew I had found it…this was it.

A print on the frame of Elle's bed…it was small and placed inside a section of blood, but it wasn't hers. I positioned a clear strip over the print to pick it up, but had a hard time with the blood around it. It was my clue though, and I knew I had to do it.

Cragen was cleaning things up, which meant that he was ready to leave shortly, so I made my business quick. I guess I forgot that Elliot was there because I kneed him in the nose getting up off the carpet.

"I'm sorry!" my hand gripped his wrist and for a second I was afraid I had hurt him. Then I saw him smile and his eyes once again sparkle their brilliant blue. Returning his grin, I helped him off the ground. Our squad shuffled down the stairs one after another and piled into our police cars.

Elliot and I went back to the ambulance to pick up Kristin and make sure that Laura would be ok on her own. We walked back to Elliot's car and silently got inside. We were in what Cragen called the "zone" or when we had just started working on a case. I didn't glance at him at all during the ride back to precinct, but I knew he was watching me. My eyes, however, rested on another… Kristin.

KRISTIN'S POV:

_Her lifeless body was being lowered into the cold dead ground, her eyes like the rest of the world around her had been shut for good. The various trees around us that were once so full of color and energy now supported bare leaves. The same was with the flowers whose petals had fallen and withered away. Besides myself, there were only five others there; my grandfather and three other men that carried my mother's body, and my grandmother. My body stood firmly on the ground, though my mind was somewhere else that day. I did not cry; I would not cry for her. That's not want she would want. Instead I remembered everything she had done for me… everything she sacrificed. _

_The funeral was short in duration, but it felt like an eternity listening to my grandparents speak of her life, the precious memories. The entire time all I could think about was if she would have survived if she heard her killer coming. _

_"Kristin…" I heard my name whispered in the distance. I turned my head to see her standing amidst the pink Dogwood trees. Her short golden brown hair hung loose around her face. I ran to her, smiling as she embraced me in her arms. I stared into her chocolate brown eyes and new I was finally where I was supposed to be. _

_Then the sky turned gray over my head and began pouring down on us. We let go of each other and I watched as she faded into the shadows. I screamed her name again and again. "Olivia, Olivia!" However, I knew she was gone._

"Kristin, KRISTIN!" my eyes snapped open and I realized where I was.

"What….yeah….OK I'm awake…" I answered wearily, rubbing my eyes. The sun was now peaking out behind the clouds, symbolizing a new day.

I followed behind my mother and Elliot watching them… wondering what was really going on between them. What was Cragen going to think when I entered the unit with them? I mean mom and Elliot are _detectives_, I'm just… a teenager, what good am I?

Like I suspected, Cragen eyed me as we entered the building, and gave mom a look saying, "She's still here?" I knew that she wouldn't care though, she motioned that it was ok then turned to me and whispered, "I'm sorry, but you can't be here for this… you can stay out here," she pointed towards the hallway, "it's the only way Cragen will have it."

"Actually Olivia, she can sit in my office," Cragen suggested. I locked onto my mother's gaze pleading to let me stay for the interview. I was so fascinated with what she did at work. I couldn't imagine being a cop and having to deal with victims like I once was. There was so much pressure forced on her shoulders, yet she balanced it like feathers.

I pulled on her arm lightly and spoke three small words, "You need me…."

"Kristin, I'm sorry I have to do this to you, but I'm just doing my job hun…" her hand tucked a small strand of my raven black hair behind my ear.

"Well good luck in there…" I told her, watching as she and Elliot reluctantly walked away from me. I heard them open a door, and saw Elliot quickly shut it behind him.

I sighed and faced Cragen once again. I joined him in his office and seated myself across his desk. My eyes darted around the room trying to find something interesting, but nothing held my attention. Alas, I stared him in the face. He ignored me for quite sometime and busied himself with paperwork on the new case at hand. When he finally looked up at me, it was with a puzzled expression that was searching my eyes for an answer.

"They're not going to find anything from Laura," I declared. It felt so good to know that I understood something he did not.

"Oh I see… and why is that Miss Benson?" he questioned almost in a snobbish way, waiting to hear what I was going to reply.

"She doesn't talk…" I stated at last. She spoke another language, one Olivia and Elliot couldn't comprehend, but I knew it though. In fact, I spoke it fluently.

"And why is that?" now I had gotten his attention. The tone in his voice became more curious. I figured he was expecting something more childish, and less…dare I say intelligent…

"She's deaf sir…" I stated after quite some time.

"And you know this how?" the Captain's voice was now very serious.

"My mother put me in charge of 'baby-sitting' her while you investigated and stuff… I tried talking to her and she didn't respond. I could tell she was trying to read my lips and spoke slower. I told her 'My name is Kristin,' and I spelled it out for her in sign language. Before I even realized what I did, she replied with hand signs. I knew then that she was deaf, that's why she was so confused…. sir you have to let me in there with them. She's not going to understand what they are saying to her."

"And why should I do that?"

"My mother…..my real mother, was deaf… sign language was my first language until I started school. I used to translate for my mother all the time…."

"I really don't think this is good for someone your age though…"

"Sir… my mother was killed and I was raped only a few months later… how can you say that I can't handle it?"

"Ok fine… but just this once…"

"Oh thank you sir!" I was overjoyed and squeezed the bald man before literally running out of his office.

When I opened the door to the Interrogation Room, the first thing I saw was Elliot who was clearly frustrated.

"Kristin," Mom started, rising from her chair, "you're not allowed in here…Cragen would be very upset if he found you in here…" she whispered softly in my ear, so Elliot could hear her.

"Mom, it's okay…Cragen sent me here," I stated aloud so they both could hear me. "By the look on Elliot's face I'm guessing you didn't find much from her…" I said standing behind Elliot who was seated next to mom.

"Actually, she didn't tell us anything…" Elliot murmured in a low voice.

I smiled, "That's what I thought…"

"What are you so happy about?" mom asked me. They were both getting pretty aggregated, I could tell.

"Laura, do you remember me? My name is Kristin…we talked earlier," I immediately began signing words. The language came back to me as clearly as ever. My hands moved first to my forehead, then up and down in front of me, and last my left hand slid back over my other wrist as I signed my statement.

She answered back with a nod of her head and the motion of raising her thumb on her other hand saying, "Yes, can you help me?"

Elliot and mom's heads turned from Laura to me as I responded with, "Yes, that's why I'm here. My mother and her partner would like to help you too…if you can answer a few questions; we can find the person that did this to you…"

She nodded again and put her hand to her head and pointing her index finger upwards telling me, "Yes, I understand…"

"Since when do you speak sign language?" Mom questioned, almost surprised.

"My real mother…she was deaf…" I responded in English, "It was my first language for years…"

"Wow…is there anything this kid can't do?" Elliot joked with a smile.

"Actually…well anyway…that's besides the point…what do you guys want me to ask her?" I asked, ready to prove I could be a detective.

"Just ask her what she remembers, then see if she can give us any names or anything… oh and tell her to be as specific as possible," Elliot told me. Both my mother and Elliot had interviewed their share of suspects and victims, but now it was their turn to sit back and let someone else behind the wheel. Honestly, I'm not sure how well this whole thing will go over, but I'll give it my best shot.

"Laura," I signaled, "I need you to tell me anything and everything you remember from this morning…"

She paused before beginning her sings, "I'm scared…" Her hands moved up and down in front of her body, her fingers spread wide.

"I know how it feels… not too long ago I was sitting in this room just like you, sharing my story… it's a scary feeling, but I know you can do it…" The translating took time. Mom or Elliot would ask me a question, I would sign it to Laura, I'd wait for her to sign something back, and then I would tell them what she said. The interview was taking longer then the others usually did, but wasted time was just something we would have to deal with.

After she finally got the courage to tell me her story, the three of us had a pretty good idea how the attack was drawn out. Laura was in the bathroom, while her younger sisters were getting ready for bed. Elle was changing into pajamas and Jane was downstairs packing her backpack for the next day. The attacker somehow got into the house without breaking any windows or doors. He began by first going upstairs, Laura could feel the vibrations of his ascent upwards, but figured it was only Jane coming to bed. First, he stabbed Elle in the back with a knife. The blade sliced through her left ventricle, causing her to scream and bleed immensely. Laura stepped out of the bathroom just in time to witness the man raising his knife to strike her again. By that time Elle's blood was covering the floor. Laura said that the smell was getting to her, but she was still able to grab the knife from the man's grip and throw it under her bed. He turned around frustrated, and pushed her into the closet behind her. At that moment Jane came up the stairs and started screaming at the sight of blood. He whipped around and pulled out his gun.

"I don't remember how he shot her… all I could see was her body lying on the ground… and him…. standing over her…"

"What happened after that?" I asked her gently.

"I came out of the closet, but the man wasn't there anymore… I've seen him before… I know who he is… but I can't remember his name…" she responded slowly, recalling the memory of his face and everything that happened.

"Could you describe him for me?"

"He was a shorter man, brown hair, blue eyes… I know I've seen him before… many times…"

"Laura do you know if anyone else would have heard anything… maybe a neighbor or something?"

'My neighbor… Mr. Winters… he gets home from work shortly before the attack… he may have heard something… I'm not so sure though…"

"OK… well thank you Laura… you've been a big help…"

"What's going to happen to me?"

"You'll probably stay with a relative or something…"

"What about my mother?"

"What do you mean?"

"She never came home…"

"Don't worry… we'll find her, but for now is there anyone else you can stay with?"

"My aunt lives in the upper eastside…"

"OK… thank you Laura…"

"No thank you…" her hand moved from her chin and down with her last words to me.

I watched carefully as Cragen took the girl by the hand and led her out of the Interrogation Room. Mom and Elliot were still sitting in the room across from me. Our eyes were focused on each other. I could feel mom studying me… I wondered what she was thinking. I still was in shock; I couldn't believe I actually did something to help the investigation. They needed me, really needed me… I couldn't believe it… maybe something was actually going right…

"Kristin… you were great… how can we thank you?" Mom asked me.

"Mom you don't have to do anything for me… I'm glad I could help…" I searched her eyes before leaving the room and left the two of them standing there alone.

GENERAL POV:

"Forensics have found a match on our fingerprints," Cragen stated to the rest of the squad.

"And what did they find?" Olivia asked.

"All three prints came from different people," Cragen answered, looking each detective in the face.

"Another case with three guys?" Olivia groaned, plopping down in her chair.

"Come on Olivia; don't give me any of that… Fin, Munch, you interview the neighbor Mr. Winters and see if he heard or saw anything. Stabler, you've got Zellers down on 5 Avenue, Benson you take Bower on 42nd, and I'll find Mr. Valentine. Let's move people, we've got a lot to do."

Munch and Fin climbed the steps to the blue and white house next to the Landis's. The door was opened ajar, but they could still see the short, plump man behind it.

"Hello?" Mr. Winters said curiously.

"Can we have a chat with you?" Munch asked flashing him his badge.

"I didn't do anything wrong officers…"

"This isn't like that…" Fin responded.

"What do you know about the attack on the Landis children?" Munch questioned.

"Listen, you've got the wrong person…"

"That's not why we're here… just tell us if you saw or heard anything…" Fin stated.

"The only thing I heard was screaming… and a gunshot…

"What time was it?" Munch stared the man down, wondering if he was lying to them or not.

"I… I don't know…"

"Do you want us to take you in?" Finn's voice rose to show the man who was in charge.

"Ok… ok… it was around 9:30- 9:45…"

Munch turned to Fin, "Doesn't that seem a bit late for a 4 and 7 year old to be going to bed?"

"Listen I'm just telling you what I know!"

Munch got up off the couch and Fin followed shortly behind him. As they were leaving, Fin added, "We'll let you know if we'll need you again."

Further downtown, Stabler was already interviewing the first suspect on their list. He was a tall blond man with dark eyes. He found him on the basketball courts, playing 2 on 2 with some other men.

Detective Stabler casually walked up to him and grabbed him by the arm, "Mr. Zellers, let's have a chat."

"What's this about?"

"Your prints were found on a murder weapon. My question is how did they get there Mr. Zellers?"

"I don't know…"

"Funny, I had a feeling you'd say that…"

"You don't understand; I really have no idea…"

"Yeah, well you say that one more time I'm really not going to believe you," Elliot gave him one of his, I've-got-you-now smiles and watched as the man thought of something to say.

"You don't understand… I don't have anything to do with this…"

"Really, well where were you last night?"

"Jamaica… with my wife…"

"So, when did your plane leave?"

"8:30 PM…"

Elliot stood there for a moment like a cornered animal trying to decide what to do next, "Do you have any records that could prove this?"

"Yes, I have my passport in my bag over there… let me get it for you…"

Elliot rolled his eyes and thought to himself, "He's still carrying his passport with him…"

Mr. Zellers returned with his passport. Elliot snatched it from him and began to flip through it, "Well this visa's enough for me…" he sighed, feeling like he had lost the battle.

"Sorry, I couldn't help you detective…"

"Maybe you can… do you recognize either of these men?" Elliot held up the pictures of the other two men they IDed from the prints at the crime scene.

"Both of them actually… we worked together. The one on the left is Antonio Valentine, a real character… he worked as a costume designer… a few years ago he did time for a DUI… that one's Fredrick Bower…"

"As in the movie star?"

"Yes, I did a little work with his one director on his film _Turbulence_… he's a very interesting man… and a good actor… he would have made a helluva lotta money on his last movie if the other actors could compete with him…"

"Interesting… well I think that's it… thank you for your time…"

"Detective… you don't really think one of them did this, do you?"

"Yeah, I do…" Elliot walked away from the courts and climbed into his car. He sat in silence before pulling out his phone.

He loved hearing the sound of her voice when she answered, "Benson…"

"Hey Liv it's me… Zellers is out of the picture… why don't you go down and talk to Bower awhile… I'll call Cragen and be right down…"

"Ok… I'll see you there…"

Cragen opened the door of Valentine's restaurant on 57th Street. It was a small place, Italian obviously. He approached Mr. Valentine, a curly haired man about his height.

"Mr. Valentine," he started flashing his badge at the owner, "can I have a word?"

"Listen, we're down a chef and this place is packed up… can we do this another time?"

"Afraid not, this is really important…"

"Fire away…"

"Funny you use that word…"

"Fire? What do you mean?"

"Do you recognize these children?" he pulled out a picture of the Meyers children before their attack.

"No, I've never seen them…"

"That's funny because the two younger girls were killed last night, one with your gun."

"My gun! That's impossible!"

"I checked your records, and there are 2 gun registered to you, both being 9 millimeters."

"Listen, I didn't kill nobody."

"Your prints were at the scene…"

"Well I wasn't there, and I didn't fire no gun."

"Then you wouldn't mind if some tests were run on your shirt?"

"I have nothing to hide…"

"What did you wear last night?"

"My black jacket and another one of my Valentine's shirts. I live above the restaurant; I could get it for you."

They climbed the stairs to Antonio's small apartment. Cragen opened the door first, "After you…"

"Here ya go." Antonio walked over to the corner of the room where some of his clothing had been thrown.

"You positive this is the shirt you wore?"

"Yes sir."

"And you haven't washed it recently?"

"No…"

"Well stick around, we may need you later…"

"Yes sir…"

OLIVIA'S POV:

I got out of my car with my eyes focused straight ahead, watching the short brown haired man. My mind was already screaming guilty… there was just something about him. I think it's because he was an actor, a rich, famous person. They always think the law doesn't apply to them… like that one child molester we had arrested years before. I felt absolutely nothing bad towards him… in fact nothing inside me was feeling sorry about interrupting his little "filming session." In fact, I was looking forward to it.

"Well if it isn't the famous Fredrick Bower…" I approached him, ending his conversation with his director. I wanted to show him I was the boss and that nothing he did or said would make me leave without an answer.

I felt his eyes search me up and down… over the years many men have checked me out, but that doesn't mean I was comfortable with it. He sensed that I showed no interest in him and finally said something, "Hey lady, I'm on the set… no time for autographs."

I whipped out my badge in his face, loving the look of surprise he gave me in exchange. I raised my eyebrows and replied arrogantly, "Maybe you can give me one later…"

"What's this all about?" I loved the look of confusion that was now spread across his face. Inside I was laughing and watching what he would do next.

"Where were you last night Mr. Bower?"

It took him a few seconds to answer me. He scratched his head and glanced at his director who was standing to the left of him… strike one… I learned from experience that those who look left are fabricating a story, and the ones who look right are telling the truth.

"I'm not saying anything without my lawyer here…"

"Well then… I suggest you find him because you've got a lot of explaining to do…"Elliot so stood at my side with his badge held out and a smile on his face.

Bower went over to talk to one of his bodyguards, so I took the opportunity to talk to Elliot. "Hey El… you ok? You look a little…"

"I'll talk to you about it later…" his eyes dropped to his feet, something I had never seen him do… something was really wrong with him… hopefully it wasn't something that important.

"Ok…" the only word I could think of saying. I glanced over Elliot's shoulder to see Bower coming towards us once again.

"So you were saying miss…"

"That's detective… detective Benson…"

"Well excuse me officer…"

"Where were you last night?"

"Here in my trailer… going over the script of course… where else?"

"Were you alone?"

"Yes… have I done something wrong?"

"Well that all depends…"

"Just what are you investigating?"

"Two homicides…"

"Don't forget about the kidnapping too Liv…"

"Oh yes… three crimes in one…"

"And how did my name get involved in this?"

"Your prints were at the crime scene…"

"Do you want to tell us where you really were last night?"

"I already told you, I was in my trailer…"

"Do you have an alibi?"

"Well no…"

"Then speak up…"

"I don't have to tell you anything…"

"Well then I guess you're coming with us"

"Fredrick Bower you're under arrest for two accounts of manslaughter in the second degree. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law. You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be given to you…"

MONDAY DECEMBER 15

OLIVIA'S POV:

"Olivia, Elliot… we've done some research on Bower…" Captain Cragen's voice was the first thing I heard as I walked into the office with Elliot.

"So what have we found?" I could feel the rush of excitement taking hold of my body, making butterflies flutter in my stomach.

"Bower had an affair with Miss Landis that ended about a week ago…"

"That's interesting…" Elliot responded.

"But there's more… Miss Landis was reported missing by Mr. and Mrs. Winters…"

"Well maybe we should go back to talk to him," I was already reaching for my things on my desk and walking out the door. "Ready Elliot?"

"Right behind you."

We got out of the door and climbed the stairs to Mr. Winters' house. He opened the door slowly, almost like he knew we were coming.

"You again?"

Elliot and I let ourselves in, and immediately began scanning the room before sitting down on the couch.

"I told your friends I have nothing to do with this…"

"Do you recognize this man?" I held up a picture of Bower, hoping Mr. Winters could tell us something we didn't already know.

"No…"

"I think there's something you need to tell us," Elliot's voice rose, and held up the missing poster. I could sense fear in Mr. Winters' eyes, something that always impressed me. I loved how Elliot could scare the witnesses into talking.

"Ok… fine…"

"Miss Landis didn't show up for work at 12 and she didn't come home anytime before the attack…" I wondered what could have possibly happened to her, and I hoped nothing bad had happened to her. Maybe it was just a coincidence…but inside I knew it wasn't.

"We know who killed Elle and Jane… and about their mother's affair… please just tell us what we need to know…" Elliot's voice got softer, but I could tell he was still angry.

"Did Fredrick Bower take her too?" I whispered so quietly no one could hear.

There was a dead silence for several minutes before Elliot finally spoke up, "Mr. Winters a woman's life is depending on you…"

"I've seen them several times standing outside her house… their relationship lasted about 2 or 3 months…"

"So what happened?"

"He was abusive… I've seen him hit her…"

"And you never went to the police?"

"I would have but… this one day I was taking out the trash, and I saw him hit her… she went back into the house and he came up to me and said that if I ever told anyone about what happened… he would kill me…"

"Do you know where she could possibly be…?"

"His mansion… he has his own private estate… I know she's there…"

"We're on it…"

We left as soon as we got the warrant for Bower's house. We knew it was his house right away. It was in the middle of nowhere and a huge place… the perfect location to put a kidnapped woman…

Cragen was there before Elliot and I entered the house. He was already tearing the place apart, but didn't find her yet.

"Cragen… the basement… did you check the basement!" I was screaming though I tried to keep it under control.

Our heavy feet pounded down the steps, growing bolder with each. My heart raced at the thought of what lay at the bottom of those stairs… I hoped for the best, but at the same time feared for the worse. The possibilities were endless, though only two crossed my mind. Miss Landis was either dead or alive… I knew she was there… she just had to be…

Our silence was deadly, but spoke for itself. I could hear their words screaming through their minds and knew that they were feeling the same tension I was. I threw open the only door, banging it into the wall… the only audible sound. My hand scrambled along the wall until I saw the switch. My heart sank as I searched the room, only to be greeted by a grievous sight. She was curled in a ball against the wall, a stream of blood trailing above her. Cragen came to her side carefully, placing a single finger on her neck. I felt a single tear slide down my face and glanced over at Elliot without thinking. He took my hand and whispered softly, "it's ok… it's ok…"

"She's still breathing…" Cragen whispered, his words echoing in the room, ringing in my ears.

I lifted my head slowly and gave him a small smile… Bower was ours… Miss Landis was safe…

SATURDAY DECEMBER 19

Elliot threw the door open and walked down the line of prisoners in the local jail.

I followed in shortly afterward and quickened my steps to catch up with him. We approached Mr. Bower's cell, staring him in the face… I couldn't believe he was the same man I had seen on TV, but yet… I knew it was him…

"You destroyed my career… I'll never be in a movie again…" I couldn't believe that was all he could think about. He felt no remorse for the little girls he killed, or their mother who also almost died from his actions. He still felt like he was innocent though every piece of evidence pointed towards him.

"As if that's all you need to be worrying about…" I stated aloud, making him think of everything he had done.

"And you get 25 years to think about all those things…" Elliot added. His victory smile spread across his face as he turned to me and said, "Come on Liv… let's get out of here."

He wrapped his arm around my waist and the two of us walked out of the precinct feeling like we were on top of the world… no one could stop us… no one would get away…


	3. What are Friends For? Part 1

Chapter 3: What are Friends for? Part I

Author: Evelien Michaels

Title: Whatever the Case May Be

SATURDAY DECEMBER 26

OLIVIA'S POV:

I climbed out of my car and rushed to the scene still in my midnight black v-neck dress that I had worn to my friend Margie's birthday party that I reluctantly had to leave because of this new case. My stiletto heels clanged on the asphalt as I approached the Captain.

"What happened to her?" I asked, carefully squatting down in my dress that rose above my knees.

"Nice dress Liv…" Elliot smiled, joining me on the cold ground.

"Shut up El…" I elbowed him in the shoulder and rubbed my arms, wishing I had been smart enough to take a coat before venturing out into a freezing December night.

Cragen cleared his throat and we turned around to face him. "Sixteen year old Tanya Patterson was shot once in the head. There are no other signs of physical abuse, but the M.E. pulled her file from the hospital and apparently she was diagnosed HIV Positive a few months ago. That's really all we can do until the morning. Olivia, Elliot I want you to go to her school and talk to her friend Gabbie. Here's a picture of Gabbie… we found it in her purse."

"This girl's only sixteen?" Elliot questioned, surprised. I was thinking the same thing. She was dressed like a hooker and it scared me to think that our children could grow up just to be like her.

"It's scary isn't it?" I stated, picking myself up off the ground and brushing off my dress. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow Captain… bye Elliot…"

As I walked back to my car, I could feel Elliot's eyes watching me until I closed the door. I waited until I saw him get into his car before leaving the scene. It was already almost midnight and the party was probably over, so I decided to drive home and make sure Kristin was alright… I could call Margie in the morning.

I fell into bed and closed my eyes, trying as hard as I could to get the image of the bloody teenager out of my head.

MONDAY DECEMBER 27

OLIVIA'S POV:

I sat on the stone steps leading to the Edison High School, patiently surveying the streets for Elliot's car. The morning still had the biting chill from the previous night, but this time I was prepared and wearing a trench coat. The school was private, and very small. It was an older building and all the students I had seen entering it were dressed in uniforms. It didn't seem like the kind of school a prostitute would attend, but then again every place is full of surprises.

Elliot finally pulled up to the curb and parked his car. His breath made a small cloud of air as he greeted me. "Good morning Olivia!" He called, shutting and locking the door behind him.

"I never thought I would have to go back to school…" I smiled, captivated by the sparkle in his eyes this early in the morning.

"Let's go Liv… this should be interesting…"

We made our way into the building just as the bell sounded, releasing students from homeroom. The homerooms were alphabetical, so we knew that Gabrielle Adams's locker would be near the front of the building. Students rushed about us, exchanging looks of confusion. Alas, we saw a short fake-blonde haired girl emerge from the classroom. She was wearing a heavy amount of make-up and two huge silver hoop earrings.

"That's definitely her," Elliot said holding up the photograph Cragen had found the last night of Gabbie and Tanya.

"Let's go have a little chat…" We walked up to her as students filed into their classrooms. I touched her shoulder lightly and whispered, "Can we talk to you for a moment?" Elliot flashed his badge and the girl turned to us startled.

"What's this about? I'm going to be late for Algebra!" Gabbie tried to break away from us, but Elliot grabbed her arm and twisted her towards us.

"Listen, we'd like to take you outside so we can talk to you in private…" He spoke quietly to her and led the way out the door.

"Gabbie," I started sitting once again on the stairs, "did anyone tell you about Tanya?"

"No!" Fear was reflected in her eyes and I knew that it wasn't going to be easy to tell her about her best friend's death, "What happened to her? Is she ok?"

I stroked her arm comfortingly and told her what had happened last night, "Tanya was shot last night… she died at midnight…"

"No! No this couldn't have happened!" Gabbie screamed and rested her head on my collarbone, sobbing unceasingly. I looked up at Elliot, sympathy in my eyes. He looked away from the two of us, hating how our jobs could make others so upset. He stated that he was going to go talk to the principal and left the two of us alone to talk.

"I'm sorry for your loss, but it's really important that you tell us about your friend… Tanya would want you to bring her killer to justice… I know it hurts, but please just help us out…"

"Tanya was my best friend… she was the only friend I felt like I could trust… how could someone do this to her?"

"Was there anyone who had a reason to do something like this? Did Tanya have any enemies, or people who would like to see her dead?"

"Tanya was really popular at school… especially with boys… don't get me wrong… Tanya was a really smart girl, but she just had a problem controlling her wild side…"

"You mean she slept around?"

"Yeah… her parents were really upset when they found out… you could imagine how angry they would have been… she ran away from home awhile ago…"

"So where is she staying now?"

"She's living with some older man… I'm not sure where exactly… she never told me…"

"Did Tanya ever try to get you involved in the kind of 'lifestyle' she was living in?"

"I told her that I would rather concentrate on my schoolwork than spend all my time with boys."

"It's important that we talk to her parents… do you know where they live?"

"Yeah… I can write down their address for you…"

"Thanks for helping us Gabbie… if you ever need to talk to someone, just call me. Here's my card."

I followed Gabbie back into the building and told her teacher why she was late for class. Then I turned down the hallway to find the principal's office. Elliot was obviously done talking to the man and was waiting for me outside of his office.

"Ready to go?" I asked, handing his jacket to him.

"Go where exactly?"

"Tanya's parents' house… apparently Tanya ran away and was living with an older man… maybe they can tell us where to find her place…"

"Well let's go then…"

"So what did the principal tell you?" I questioned Elliot as we traveled towards the upper eastside.

"Tanya had been a straight A student until the end of the first semester when her grades showed a horrible decline… he was worried about her and called her parents, but they wouldn't answer. He also noticed that she began wearing a lot of make-up and not always wearing all parts to her uniform… you could imagine what he meant… so anyway what did you get from Gabbie?"

"Well I already told you about the older man, but Gabbie said that there were a lot of men in her life…"

"You mean she was…?"

"Yeah… Gabbie told Tanya that that kind of lifestyle just wasn't for her… Elliot…"

"Yeah?"

"Their house is the second on the right…"

"Well here we go…"

Elliot knocked on the door and a short, heavyset woman opened the door with a get-out-of-my-face expression spread across her face.

"Whadda ya want?" the woman asked. She smelled like smoke and liquor and made my nose wrinkle up as we pushed our way into the house.

"We need to talk to you about your daughter?" I told her flashing my badge.

"My daughter? I think you're looking for Mrs. Patterson…" she answered.

"And you would be?" Elliot asked picking up a photo of Tanya and who we assumed were her parents.

"The cleaning lady…"

"Where are Mr. and Mrs. Patterson?" I questioned walking into the foyer and gazing up at a gold ceiling and a crystal chandelier. My mouth hung open and Elliot had to pull me upstairs and away from the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my life.

I followed Elliot down the hallway and stopped at the last door. He knocked and called to the people inside, "Mr. and Mrs. Patterson… can you open up… we need to talk to you… this is the Police…"

There was a moment of silence before the father opened the door and invited us into Tanya's room. I realized that Gabbie must have told her parents about her death already… it was the only excuse I could think of. The way Gabbie explained it, they wanted absolutely nothing to do with her.

Mrs. Patterson had been crying for awhile, I could tell by the redness of her eyes. They were a couple in their late forties, and obviously rich and most likely very strict and proper.

"If this is about our daughter, we already know…" Mr. Patterson informed us.

"We know that she ran away with an older man… do you know why she left?" I seated myself on Tanya's computer chair and stared at Elliot as he scanned the room, looking at the trophies Tanya had won. There were awards for winning the spelling bee, science fair, math competitions, and poetry contests. I was amazed how an intelligent girl like Tanya could just through herself into a world of prostitution. I feared about my own daughter. Kristin was just as smart as Tanya… what if she made the same horrible mistake Tanya had made? The thought made me sweat with fear.

"About four months ago my wife and I caught Tanya smoking and… and drinking… we firmly believed that Tanya couldn't really be doing these things. We went to consoling and it worked well for awhile, but then we found her at a bar drinking… and… and…"

"Mr. Patterson it's ok…" I tried to sound reassuring, but I already knew what he was going to say.

"She was stripping… she used fake ID to get into the bar… when I found her, I couldn't believe it was her… I couldn't believe it…"

"About a month ago I found a pile of money stuffed in the corner of her underwear drawer. Tanya came home early that day and caught me in her room… I asked her where the money came from and she told me she had been 'working' and getting paid quite a lot… it made me sick…" Mrs. Patterson declared quietly.

"When you caught her drinking Mr. Patterson… who was she with?" Elliot inquired, fixing his eyes away from the ribbons and trophies and onto the quiet couple sitting on the young girl's bed.

"Most of the time it was with older men…"

"Well was there anyone else?" I asked, jumping up from the computer chair I had been sitting on.

"Yes… Tanya's friend, Gabrielle Adams."


	4. Part II

Chapter 4: What are Friends For? Part II

Author: Evelien Michaels

Title: Whatever the Case May Be

Tuesday December 28

OLIVIA'S POV:

I rolled out of bed when my alarm clock blasted me awake at 6:30 in the morning. The only thing I could think about was what Mr. and Mrs. Patterson told Elliot and me. Gabbie wasn't as innocent as she seemed; she was a liar and that was what angered me the most. I tried to give her compassion towards the loss of her best friend, and in turn she lies to me about being involved in the same way of life Tanya had entered in.

After turning off my alarm, I fixed myself some coffee, which tasted worse than usual. I suppose it was because of the kind of mood I was in, but I couldn't really tell. Realizing that it was already almost 7:00, I ran into the bathroom and began brushing my teeth. The sound of the electric toothbrush moving throughout my mouth was almost loud enough to drown out my angry thoughts about Gabbie, but I could still hear my mind screaming "How could she lie to me like that?"

I sighed and spit out my toothpaste and watched the blue foam swirl in circles as it drained down the sink. My outfit had already been laid out and I slipped into my clothes quietly trying to think of something us to focus on. In the next room, I watched as Kristin emerged and pulled a box of Pop Tarts out of the pantry. I felt bad for waking her up so early during the holiday season, but I knew she was used to it.

"Hey mom…" Kristin yawned as she put the Pop Tarts into the toaster. "Getting ready for work?"

"No I felt like taking a stroll around the building…" I smiled and looked up at her once I finished looping my belt in place. She was still wearing pajamas, and her hair was sticking up in odd directions, but she returned my smile.

"Be careful mom… I don't want anything bad to happen to you…" she grabbed a plate and placed the Pop Tarts on it before taking a seat on one of the stools in the kitchen.

"Honey you know I'll be ok… I'm more worried about you… are you sure you'll be alright?" I snatched a brush and began applying blush to my cheeks.

"Mom I'll only be alone for about an hour or two… it's Tuesday remember? Tuesday's are State Orchestra practices…"

"It's Tuesday already?" I joked as a knock was placed on the door. "I'll get that…"

"Alright…"

I was surprised by who was standing behind the door; it was Elliot. He smiled at me and his brilliant blue eyes lit up and made me melt inside. "Hey! I wasn't expecting to see you so early! Do you want to come in?"

"Sure, thanks Liv. Hey Kristin! How are you?" I enjoyed the way he treated my daughter. She thought of him like a father, and that in itself made me smile. She never had a father and Elliot was the only man who ever loved her. He cared for her like I did his children; we loved them like they were our own.

"I'm fine Mr. Stabler! How are you?" she pulled her long black hair into a bun and put her plate into the dishwasher. Then she ran over to him and gave him a giant hug like a three year old would. I laughed at the way she acted… she was so mature… and yet so immature at the same time.

"I told you a thousand times Kristin, you can call me Elliot! Now is it alright if I talk to your mother?"

"Sure… that's alright with me," she walked away and disappeared into her room, but we could still hear her say, "Talk to ya later Elliot…"

"So what's up Elliot? I'm not used to seeing you this early in the morning… are you alright?" I gazed into his eyes that were like two huge concrete walls blocking me from his emotions and thoughts.

"Let's sit down…" he said walking over to the couch and taking a seat.

"Elliot now I know something's wrong… talk to me…"

"It's the kids…"

"Are they alright? Did someone get hurt?"

"No… Kathy's trying to take them from me…"

"What? What do you mean?"

"She trying to get full custody of them… she says that I can't take care of them because I'm never at home… she can't do this to me Liv… it's not fair…"

"You look at me Elliot Stabler," I spoke grabbing his shoulders like he had done to me when I was upset, "There is no reason why she should do something like this to you and believe me… she's not going to win… your kids care about you Elliot… I care about you too… so hear me out… no judge is going to take your kids away from you Elliot… ok?"

"Yeah… thanks Liv…"

"Anytime…" I smiled. It amazed me how a strong man like Elliot could break down to the point where he was almost crying. I never had seen him like that, even after his divorce with Kathy had been finalized.

"Well I think it's almost time for school…" Elliot was quick to get away from the situation and headed straight for the door.

"Our children are lucky… they get to sit at home watching MTV while we go to a year round private school… oh joy…"

"Sucks for you!" Kristin hollered from her room.

"Let's go have a chat with Gabbie…" I followed him out the door, anxious to have another chat with Gabbie and praying that she wouldn't lie to us this time.

"Oh my God are you kidding me? Isn't it enough you ruined my life already? I can't believe you people!" Gabbie was evidently upset that we were coming back to talk to her, but I was angrier. I was still extremely irritated that she would lie to the police; especially because that was something I would never dream of doing.

"It's nice to see you too Gabbie… now I know how important your schoolwork is to you, but we really need to talk to you…" Elliot smirked and pulled her into the empty cafeteria.

"So tell me Gabbie, why on Earth did you lie to us yesterday?" my tone rose and I watched the little hairs on her arm stand up. She didn't understand that what she did was wrong, but between Elliot and me, I think we could easily get the message across.

"I'm sorry detectives… I was just so ashamed of what I did… are you going to tell my parents about this?" She seemed afraid of us, but I firmly believed that she was just putting on an act.

"I thought you didn't want to be part of that kind of lifestyle… so tell me the truth Gabbie…" I stared into her eyes, watching to see what her eyes would tell me.

She glanced over her right shoulder before answering with, "We needed the money for clothes…" I knew she was telling us what really happened this time. She looked to the right which I was told meant that she was telling the truth.

"If your parents are anything like Tanya's I don't think that getting money for clothes would be a problem…" Elliot stated, almost shouting.

"Calm down Elliot…… Gabbie, Tanya's parents told us that they caught you drinking with Tanya and an older man… tell us his name Gabbie…"

"His name is Byron…"

"Byron what?"

"Byron Keller…"

"Byron's the man Tanya was living with isn't it?"

"Yes…"

"So where does he live?"

"I dunno…"

"Stop lying to us Gabbie!" Elliot stood up to face her, losing his patience with this girl and more than tired of her lies.

"Ok, ok… he lives on 21st… can I go now?"

"Yeah… you can go now…"

We hurriedly climbed the steps to his apartment and I immediately pounded on the door shouting, "Mr. Keller open up! It's the police!"

After a few moments we heard a man roll out of bed and wander over to the door, muttering to himself. His gray hair was a mess, and he wasn't exactly what we were expecting him to be. He glanced from my partner and rested his eyes on me, sending shivers up and down my spine and making me squirm. "Is there something wrong detectives?"

I grabbed Elliot's arm before he could lunge at the man for checking me out. Silently, I laughed to myself and rolled my eyes.

"Do you mind if we have a chat Mr. Keller?" he asked, forcing is way inside the apartment.

"Byron… and what about?" he winked at me and gestured that I come inside. I grimaced, but followed him in anyway.

"Tanya Patterson…" I told him picking up a picture of the two of them.

"Tanya! Is she ok? I haven't seen her in days! Is she hurt? Is that why you're here?"

"Well Mr. Keller… Tanya was murdered Sunday night…" I whispered, barely audible.

"WHAT!"

"I'm sorry for your loss… but hasn't anyone told you already?" Elliot questioned sitting down in a plaid loveseat.

"No… how could this happen?" he began crying, but to me it just seemed like he was pretending to act like the worried parent. I watched him sit in the seat across Elliot before joining my partner on the sofa.

"Byron," I spoke, breaking the silence, "we know Tanya was living with you… do you know why someone would do this?"

"Tanya was a good person… very beautiful…"

"So, when she ran away, why did you decide to take her in?"

"I needed help with my new business…"

"Business?"

"Yes, I own a small movie business and she agreed to work for me…"

"What kind of 'movie business'?"

"Listen everything we do is legal!"

"Anyone at the job argue with her?"

"No… nothing serious at least, she was very well liked… however, one young lady did fight with her a few times…"

"And her name is…?"

"Gabrielle… Gabrielle Adams…"

"Thank you for your time Byron…" Elliot rose from the sofa and helped me up as well. We closed the door behind us and traveled six flights of stairs down to our police car.

I sighed heavily and stared into his sparkling blue eyes, "You know what we have to do now…"

"Go back and talk to Gabbie…"

"This girl is really starting to frustrate me…" I stated opening the passenger door and climbing into the seat.

"Oh I'm way past frustrated… believe me…" He started up the engine when my phone began ringing.

"Benson…" the captain's voice was on the other line, asking where the two of us were. "Captain we have to go back to the high school and speak with Gabbie… mmmhmmm… yeah I know we're wasting time sir, but it's not our fault! She's the one who keeps changing her story… mmhmm… yes… yes… ok… alright… goodbye…"

"Somebody's not too happy with us…"

"If Gabbie lies to us again, I swear I'll…"

"Come on Liv," Elliot chuckled, "let's go talk to the little demon…"

By the time we got to the school, Gabbie was already waiting to get on the bus, and sitting on a bench at the bus stop.

"Gabbie," I said lightly tugging on her arm and pulling her along with the two of us, "we need to talk."

"Now what? Haven't I been through enough with you people?"

"Spare us the drama Gabbie, you know that until you tell us the truth we're going to keep coming back here…" Elliot watched the boys in her class wink at her before getting on the bus and she waved to them as if saying that she wasn't in trouble with the police. Gabbie was trying to pretend like she didn't give a shit about the investigation or anything we were doing, but I wasn't going to let her win me over.

"What do you need to know?" she asked challenging my eyes.

Elliot finally found his way into the conversation after all the students had filed into the bus. "Byron Keller, what do you know about him and his business?"

"Just that Tanya was living with him; I didn't know he had a business."

"Strike one… nice try though… you worked for him Gabbie," I concluded accepting her duel and loving the surprised look on her face when my eyes fired back at her.

"Ok, so what… I didn't do anything wrong…"

"So what exactly did you do?" Elliot cut in, sensing the tension between us.

"You know… we did little skits and stuff…" I watched as she peered over her shoulder and waved to a boy walking across the street.

I cleared my throat and regained her attention, "What kind of 'stuff'?" Her feet instantly became her eyes' new target, rather than my face. She was clearly a drama queen and was definitely playing the part.

Slowly, her head lifted, tears filling her eyes, and rested it down on Elliot's shoulder as she began openly sobbing. A wave of envy shot through my body as I stared her down, not feeling an once of sympathy towards her. "Who does she think she is?" I asked myself.

"I said that I didn't want to do it… but I needed the money and couldn't find any other jobs… besides they made it sound like it was so awesome…" she stared at me once again and I felt myself giving in, though I tried hard not to break down.

"Gabbie… it's ok…" her head was now resting on my shoulder and I was patting her back, trying to calm her down. My thoughts were on Elliot and how he was going to tease me later. I hate how I feel so concerned for these people who frustrate us.

"We need to…" Elliot started before I interrupted him.

"I know Elliot… call Casey…" I watched him walk back to the car and radio the captain. "Yeah Cap… get Casey down there ASAP…"

"I gotta go…" Gabbie whispered pulling away from me like nothing happened.

"Call me if you need me," I added handing her one of my cards with my work number on it.

We walked in our different directions and I once again joined Elliot in our car as Gabbie disappeared around a corner.

"Casey here yet Cap?" I asked walking into the precinct and pouring a cup of coffee.

"Be careful… it could be Munch made…" Elliot whispered in my ear, making my serious face crack a huge smile and I stuck out my tongue at the thought of drinking Munch made coffee.

"She'll be here soon…" I heard the Captain shout, breaking our little flirt session, or whatever you want to call it. Cragen was constantly acting like my father, especially when I was around Elliot…

"So what's going on?" Munch suddenly appeared and stared me down before I finally poured him a cup of coffee.

"We need Casey to get us a search warrant…" Elliot said taking a seat atop his desk.

"Already? For who?" Fin turned the corner and plopped down with a bag of doughnuts that Elliot and Munch immediately attacked.

"Byron Keller," I stated scowling at the amount of fat they were shoving into their bodies, "the man our vic was living with."

"Do you think he could have done this?" the Captain asked, coming out of his office and shutting the door behind him.

"I dunno… that's not why we need the warrant though…"

"Then why do we need it?" Casey inquired, stepping into the precinct.

"Hey Case… why don't we sit down and talk about it…" I smiled and followed Elliot into another room where we could talk privately.

"So tell me about this Mr. Keller…" Casey questioned.

"About a month ago Tanya ran away from home and moved in with him…"

"Well he sounds ok…"

"But in exchange for a living space, she had to do work for him…" Elliot started.

"Doing what?" Casey interjected and looked at both Elliot and me, "Do I want to know?"

"He makes movies…" I confirmed simply.

"Movies?" Casey raised an eyebrow at my straightforward statement.

"Movies…" Elliot declared.

"Didn't he know she was only sixteen?" Casey inquired leaning back in her chair.

"Evidently not…"

"Well… is that all we got?"

"No… he was also found smoking and drinking with Tanya and Gabbie…" I added, hoping that our evidence would be enough to get him for something.

"Not to mention taking them to strip clubs…" Elliot also supplied, hoping that piece of evidence would help the case too.

"So we won't be able to arrest him for murdering her, but we can get him for possession of kitty porn…"

"Do you think it's enough?" I asked after a few moments of watching Casey ponder.

"I'll get you that warrant…"

"Thanks Case," I smiled before she left the room.

"That's what I'm here for."


	5. Part III

A/N: Hey everyone! I know it's been about a month since i last updated, but i've been rather busy lately! My mother and i went to europe for 2 weeks and before i have to spend a week at my cousin's without a computer, so i really haven't been able to update until now! The next chapter should be up either later today or tomorrow. I'm sorry it took so long! i hope you like it! You finally find out who killed Tanya! Please send reviews! And Thank you! 333 evelien

Chapter 5: Part III- Caught Red-handed

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 29

OLIVIA'S POV

"Mr. Keller, we found some tapes in your 'workplace,' care to guess what was on them?" Captain Cragen asked, stepping into the Interrogation Room. Wednesday morning was cold, dark, and dreary. Our entire unit had stayed overnight and it was already 3 AM; we had been working without stopping for eighteen hours.

"I have no idea Captain," he replied nonchalantly, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it.

"There's no smoking in here Mr. Keller," his lawyer whispered, and Keller quickly put out the flame.

"Underage teenagers engaging in sexual activity! That's what!" Cragen was pissed, hell we were all pissed, however, Keller seemed undisturbed.

"That's bull! All my employees are twenty-one and older!"

"Guess again!" Cragen opened the year book we borrowed from the principal to the page where both Gabbie and Tanya's pictures were.

"No… no… this can't be right! They lied! Those bitches lied to me!"

"Watch your language Mr. Keller! Now, personally I could careless about them lying to you! You still broke the law! We're going to lock you up anyway, so you might as well tell us what happened!"

Elliot, Casey, and I watched through the window as Keller deeply sighed, whispered to his lawyer and turned once again to Cragen, "Tanya, Gabbie, and I were out drinking that night… I left early to work with two actresses, I swear. I didn't kill her… talk to Gabbie, she saw her last!"

"We've talked to Gabbie… she wouldn't tell us anything… but you see what the real problem is here?"

"No…"

"You have a motive…"

"WHAT! I loved Tanya! I cared for her when she ran away! I gave her food, and a roof to live under!"

"Yes… that's true… however, last week you did take her to the doctor's didn't you?"

"Yes… what's your point?"

"Do you remember why you went there?"

Keller sat in silence, "What is Cragen trying to say?" Casey whispered to me, on the other side of the window.

I shrugged, "Evidently the Captain found something before we did…"

"You took Tanya to the doctors where she was tested for AIDS…"

"Yeah so?"

"She was HIV positive… you knew that she was going to ruin your business because of her infection, and that your other employees could also be contaminated, isn't that true!"

"I didn't kill her!"

"Seems like a pretty good reason to kill her wouldn't you say so Detective?" he asked as I walked into the Interrogation Room.

"Elliot and I are going to check out Keller's place… Casey's getting the search warrant as we speak…"

"This place reeks! What is that?" I scrunched up my nose, as I dug through the piles of who-knows-what in Keller's apartment.

"Sweet 'n Sour pork," Elliot responded, holding up a Chinese carton filled with spoiled food.

"Yuck! Did you find anything in this mess?"

"No…not yet…"

I sighed heavily, searching through the heaps of garbage for anything that could possibly help us. _God this place is sick_, I thought to myself.

Soon after Elliot interrupted my thoughts, "Wait… Liv!"

"What is it?"

"Tanya and Gabbie's fake IDs…"

"Looks like Keller wasn't lying to us…"

"Liv… I think I found something else…"

"Another tape?" I stated flipping it over to read the label, "Gabbie's 1st day?"

"Why wasn't this one with the other ones?"

"I dunno, but we have to find out…"

Elliot pushed the tape into the VCR and within minutes we could see Tanya and other man sitting on the couch.

"I'm gonna be sick…" I whispered, terrified of what could possibly show up on the tape.

Gabbie was standing in the distance, watching Tanya and the man make out on the couch. Tanya pulled away from him and took Gabbie's hand, drawing her to the couch. Gabbie was crying and whispering 'no' as the man reached up under her shirt and unstrapped her bra.

"I've seen enough…" Elliot shut the TV off and we quickly left the room, taking the tape with us and left to go back to the precinct.

We entered the precinct, the entire squad feeling like we were back at square one, and we absolutely hated that feeling. The Captain told us that he had contacted the rest of Byron's staff to inform them that Tanya had been tested HIV positive, and suggested that they all got tests done themselves. It seemed like the only option Elliot and I had was to go back to Gabbie yet again and talk to her about Tanya forcing her into the business. Talking to Gabbie was like going to the dentist, painful, annoying, but nevertheless unavoidable.

"Gabbie…" I started, following the girl into the building and quickly taking her aside before anyone else knew what was going on.

"I told you everything I know already!" she screamed, but neither Elliot nor I seemed to care anymore.

"Gabbie… we know Tanya got you into the business… she got you a fake ID and she brought you down to Byron Keller's without asking you first… Gabbie we…" I tried to sound comforting and understanding, but what was now more than a day of working without sleeping, I sounded agitated and extremely pissed.

"She ruined my life!" Gabbie interrupted before I could finish my statement. "My parents hate me; I spend my nights drunk and high! It's all her fault! I didn't want to hurt her! She messed up everything! I didn't want to kill her! I didn't!" she turned to cry on Elliot's shoulder, but we were no longer in the mood for being compassionate.

I pulled out my handcuffs and strapped them around her wrists. "Gabrielle Adams, you are under arrested for the murder of Tanya Patterson. Anything you say can and will be used in the court of law, you have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be given to you.

I hope you enjoyed it! More soon! The next chapter is more EO! YAY FINALLY! please review! 333 evelien


	6. Sunday Morning

Chapter 6: Sunday Morning

Summary: In this chapter, EO finally take their relationship to the next level…. ahaha finally!

PLEASE REVIEW!

SATURDAY JANUARY 1

Olivia's POV

I rolled over in my bed to silence my alarm clock whose blaring noise I had been avoiding for quite some time now. Squinting in the dark, I hit the off button and tried to make out the red neon numbers on the clock. It took a few seconds for the numbers to register in my brain. That. Cannot. Be. Right. 8:15! How could I have possibly slept through my alarm for more than two hours?

Racing and thinking of some excuse that could explain my absence, I rushed to put on my boots and button up my jacket. Outside my door, I heard the sound of MTV coming from the living room, and knew that Kristin must have been awake and probably thought I was at work. Quickly checking that my appearance looked somewhat appealing, I headed out to the kitchen to grab anything that could somewhat tame my furious appetite for the time being.

"Mum, bloody 'ell what are you still doing 'ere?" Kristin asked, startled when I emerged from my room.

"I slept through my alarm… I have no idea why ok! I'm running really late ok!"

"Orchestra camp…"

"Excuse me?"

"You had to drop me off at orchestra camp because…"

I smiled realizing that she was trying to make an excuse for me, but before I could thank her, a loud knock was placed on the door.

"Who's that?" she pondered, turning the TV off.

"No clue… I'll get it…"

I opened the door surprised to see Elliot there, a smile plastered across his face.

"Hey! Happy New Year!" he cheered stepping inside the apartment.

"Elliot! How are you! I thought the kids were with you today!" I pulled him into a hug, so happy that he chose to spend the holiday with me, but at the same time, a pang of guilt twisted in my gut because he wasn't with his family.

"No, Kathy wanted them to meet her fiancée's parents… besides, I thought my girl could use some company!"

"Well thanks El!" I closed the door and followed him into the kitchen.

"Actually I was talking about Kristin!" he winked at her and she laughed, grabbing a stool and sitting across from us.

"Oh hahaha… so… Kathy's getting married eh?" I was at a loss for words and immediately felt regret for asking him about that subject.

"Yeah, to some loser named Brent…"

"Sounds like someone's jealous!" I replied punching him in the arm.

"Hate to um…. break this up, but mum aren't you supposed to be at work in a half an hour?"

"Oh crap… El we need to jet now!"

"Liv calm down! Cragen gave us off remember?"

"Right… I, uh, forgot…well then… you wanna join us for breakfast?"

"I'm making French toast and eggs!" Kristin said happily.

"Well I hope you cook better than you mom!"

"Oh don't worry, she watches the Food Network," I stated rolling my eyes and smiling.

"Well then, count me in!" he replied, smiling back and taking a seat.

"So KC, we've got the whole day to ourselves, and I was thinking…"

"Oh! Can we? Can we please?" she begged jumping up and down like an impatient two year old.

"Only if you don't laugh at me!"

"YES! Thanks mum!" she wrapped her skinny tan arms around my waist

and took off to change into something heavier as the stove heated.

"What was that?" Elliot asked raising an eyebrow.  
"Kris has been bugging me to take her skating, too bad I'm horrible at it…"

"Well… that's going to be fun to watch!" he elbowed me in the shoulder.

"Oh like you're any better!"

He smiled searching my eyes, trying to think of some kind of come back. "Yeah, Kathy and I used to take Maureen skating all the time when she was little."

"Right… sure you did…"

"Well come now! Eat up!" Kristin returned from her room wearing a bomber jacket and skating pants, a pair of skates draped over her left shoulder. Elliot and I rolled our eyes before eating our breakfast.

"Thank you so much mum!" Kristin squealed kissing me on both my cheeks and smiling widely as she laced up her ice skates.

"You've said that a hundred times already! Now go have fun… we'll be right there..." she knotted both skates and excitedly raced out on the ice.

I sat on a bench, waiting for Elliot to return with the rented skates, and dreading skating, knowing that I would continually fall on my butt. Sighing heavily I took the pair of skates from Elliot and began to tighten him. His eyes lingered over me, his lips curling into a smile.

"What's so funny?"

"You're hating this aren't you?"

"Oh shut up!" he laughed and finished tying his skates, waiting for me to finish with mine.

"Ladies first," he said allowing me to take my first steps onto the ice.

"I can't believe I'm doing this!" I took no more than three steps and found myself sitting down on the solid, cold ice.

"Watch it Liv!" he skated towards me smiling and grabbed under my armpits, lifting me off the ground.

"I'm really bad aren't I?"

"Well…"

"Hey!" I turned around noticing that Kristin was skating not far from us. "Look at her!"

"She's something isn't she?"

"Yeah… is there anything she can't do?" I smiled, amazed by how easily she glided over the ice. "Showoff…" I muttered.

"I guess not…" he smiled at my last comment and let me go once again.

I started moving and almost ran into a little girl, tripping on my own feet and falling. Elliot caught me before I hit the ground and pulled me back to my feet. I tried to regain my composure and move again, but I found it hard to balance.

"Here… take my hand…" I reached for his hand reluctantly and we continued our way around the rink.

"Thanks El…" We skated around in an awkward, yet comfortable silence. In no time I forgot that he was even holding my hand. Around us, people's eyes watched us, smiling. I heard one person say that we looked "cute" and I immediately found myself blushing. However, it felt so right to be next to Elliot, holding his hand.

"I dunno about you…" I said, snapping out of our somewhat magical state, "but my feet are killing me…"

"Let's sit a little then…" we found our way to the exit ramp and returned our skates. There was a small place next to the skate rental where you could buy something to eat and drink. We decided to buy some hot chocolate and found our way to a bench where we could sit.

"She's so beautiful," I smiled sitting down to face the rink and watching Kristin perform a complete spiral in the center of ice.

He joined me and sighed glancing at her before changing the subject, "Did you tell her yet?"

My smile quickly faded, "No… Margie, Dr. Yei, told me two weeks ago, but I just haven't found the right time… but it's been exactly a month… I'll tell her tonight…" I ran my hands over my forehead and looked down at the ground.

"You gonna be ok Liv?"

"I just don't know how she'll handle it… I mean, she's finally gotten over the pain…"

"Does she know about you?"

"Being a child of rape?" he nodded. "No…"

"Do you want me to be there?" I thought about his offer for a few moments then slowly nodded. "It's gonna be fine…" he took my hand in his and entwined his fingers.

"How would you know?" I whispered painfully staring at the ground once again.

With his other hand, he turned my face towards him and brushed the hair out of my eyes. "Listen to me Olivia Benson, nothing bad is going to happen I promise…" I sighed again, resting my head comfortably on his shoulder. Before I knew what was happening, his lips where inches from mine.

In the corner of my eye, I heard a thud and a small whine. "Oh no! Kristin!" I leapt off the bench, and ran across the ice in my black two inch high boots.

"I'm fine… I'm fine…" she stated, standing slowly and glaring in my eyes.

"Are you sure? Nothing feels weird?" she shook her head. "Come sit with us Kris…"

"Why don't we grab some lunch at Central Perk?" Elliot suggested as Kristin took her skates off.

"Sounds good to me."

"That grilled chicken sandwich was so 'uge!" Kristin laughed, as Elliot waved down a cab to take us back to my apartment.

"I can't believe you ate the whole thing!" I smiled opening the door for her.

"This may sound funny but I think I'm still hungry!"

Elliot and I exchanged knowing glances, "Must be a growth spurt!" Elliot said telling the cab driver our destination.

"Oh I hope not! I'm already the tallest on our gymnastics team!" she smiled and watched snowflakes begin to fall outside the window.

The ride back to the apartment was short and none of us really knew what to say, so we just sat surrounded by a peaceful silence. Kristin slept most of the twenty minute ride, her eyes drifting shut after only a few moments of driving. It always amazed me that she could have so much energy one moment and be completely wiped out the next.

I woke her up as we approached the apartment and all three of us eagerly climbed the stairs, wanting nothing more than to sit on the couch in front of the fireplace. We finally reached our apartment on the third floor, and I frantically searched for the key in my jungle of a purse.

Kristin grabbed my wrist and the two of us collapsed onto the couch. Elliot stared at us for a few moments before bursting out laughing.

"Oh shut up Elliot!" I exclaimed, pulling him down next to me.

Just as we were getting comfortable, the phone began to ring. "You have got to be kidding me!" Kristin stated sarcastically as she rushed to get the phone in the kitchen. "Benson." she said in her thick British accent. Elliot and I smiled at each other as she answered the phone. "Nat! How are you? Ok… ok… I'd love to! Ok then… ok bye!"

"What's going on hun?" I asked, certain that either Natalie wanted her to come over, or vice versa.

"Mum, can you take me to Nat's?"

"Sure hun…" I sadly put my coat back on and watched Kristin leave opening the door and anxiously closing it behind her.

"Be here when I come back?" I asked Elliot, who was still comfortably sitting on the couch. He nodded, and I smiled placing a single kiss on his cheek before heading out the door after Kristin.

"Olivia!"

"Margie! How are you?" I asked the short black haired woman and gave her a warm hug.

"Come in please!" she smiled.

"I really shouldn't….Elliot's…"

"Just a few minutes…" I smiled and stepped into her house as Kristin ran past me to join Natalie in the other room.

"So how are you holdin up?"

"I think Kristin's better than me… when I adopted her I promised to protect her, but the truth is, I can't be there every minute of her life… I can't save her from the freaks in this city…"

"But you can lock them away…"

I sighed sitting down in her leather armchair, "I just can't help but think that this is all my fault… if only I wasn't working as much… I should be home more… maybe I should… get a different job…"

"Olivia… you love SVU… Kristin's attack wasn't your fault, we both know that…"

"She seems ok though… and that's all that matters to me…"

"This shouldn't have happened to you Olivia… you don't deserve this after all you've been through…"

"No one deserves this Margie… this is a mother's worse nightmare… how would you feel if you daughter was raped? She doesn't deserve to be anymore than Kristin did… no matter how hard I work, I just have to face it… this will never stop… it will never stop…"

"That's why you need to keep doing what you do best… you need to fight for every victim… all the people who can't fight for themselves… with out you Olivia, no one will ever have closure."

"Thanks Margie… omg! It's 6 already!"

"Talk to ya later Olivia…"

"Yeah… I'll be back later for Kristin…"

"Ok… bye Olivia…"

"Elliot…" I knocked on the door, waiting for him to answer, "Elliot I'm back…" he didn't come so I searched through my purse once again for my keys. "Elliot… I'm… what's all this?" The lights were slightly glowing, the dining room table adorned with two gleaming candles and two place settings.

"Liv… with everything going on, I figured you could use a nice relaxing dinner…"

"Elliot… I don't know what to say…" he pulled out one of the seats for me, and I sat down locked onto his blue eyes.

"Thank you would be nice…" he smiled one of his amazing big white smiles and I melted in my seat.

"Thank you El… you really didn't need to do this…" I couldn't help but return his smile. "Something smells great… what is it?"

"Fettuccini Alfredo…" he disappeared into the kitchen for a moment and returned with a shiny silver plate. He dished out the pasta on my plate, gazing at me the entire time, and then gave himself some pasta also.

"You made Fettuccini Alfredo?" I smiled as he sat across from me at the table, and laughed remembering the last time he made pasta.

"It is your favorite right?"

"Yeah… yes it is…" I smiled and picked up my fork, twirling the pasta with a spoon.

"How is it?"

"El this is great… everything is… dinner, the candles… you….thank you…so how long did this all take?"

"1 and a half hours… I finished just as you were coming in…" he smiled putting a forkful of pasta in his mouth.

"How did you know I wouldn't come back earlier?"

"Well it takes thirty minutes to drive there and thirty minutes to drive back…"

"And Margie stalled for you?" I smiled, catching him red handed.

"How is Margie?"

"She's good…"

"That's good…"

"So how are the kids…?"

"They're doing fine… Maureen's staying with Kathy over the break; Katie's happy about that… lately the twins have been at each other's throats…"

"Well they are thirteen…"

"Yeah… Lizzie's starting some dance thing through school…"

"Kristin was going to do that… but I don't think she should now…"

"Yeah…"

"I just don't know what I'm gonna say to her…. 'Kristin, no dancing and no gymnastics…' that's all the poor kid does…"

"She'll understand…"

"She's going to hate me…"

"No she won't Liv… it's going to be fine…"

"What am I going to do about school? Think about what the kids at school will say! It's bad enough that she's going to be skipping grades and going to be the youngest in her class, so now what will they say?"

He reached across the table and took my hands in his, "Liv… calm down… just relax…"

I sighed desperately needing to change the subject. "So… Kathy's getting married…"

"Yeah… he's a nice guy, but he's a real geek…"

I smiled once again, "I bet he'll get along fine with Dickey…"

He smiled back, "He said Brent drives him insane…"

"God… I'm stuffed!"

"Me too…"

"This was great El… thank you…" I stood up from the table, releasing his hands and smiled down at him. I kissed his cheek and he gently grabbed my wrist before I could get away. Our smiles were contagious, and I enjoyed the sparkle in his eyes.

"I'll be right back…" I whispered, going into my bedroom and returning with pajamas on.

He was sitting on the couch, and motioned for me to join him. Reaching to grab a bottle of wine one the coffee table, he poured two glasses and handed me one. We sat in silence sipping the white wine and after I finished, I set the glass back down on the table. The fire flicked on and I watched, mesmerized by the reflection the orange and yellow flames cast on Elliot's face. I quietly scooted closer to him, and he looked down at me before pulling me into his lap. Sighing happily, I laid my head in his chest and inhaled his scent of aftershave.

I felt so comfortable lying curled up on his lap with my head rested against him. _This is amazing_, I continued to tell myself, _and finally it happened_. Just as we were getting cozy on the couch, my cell phone began to ring.

"Leave it Liv…"

"I can't El… Benson… hey Kris… are you sure Dr. Yei doesn't have a problem with it? Ok… ok… I love you too… have fun… goodnight…" I pressed the red button on my cell phone and placed it back on the counter. "She's sleeping over…"

"Come here Liv…" he gently pulled me back into his lap.

"I guess I'll tell her tomorrow…"

"Don't worry about it Liv…"

"El… thank you for everything…" I stared into his brilliant sky blue eyes and couldn't help but smile.

"You're welcome," he said exchanging my gaze and making my body feel limp in his warm arms.

It seemed like eternity before our lips finally touched, but when they did, it was like receiving an electric shock. It was a kiss that to me seemed too short, but at the same time full of passion.

"El…" I whispered after we broke apart.

"Yeah?"

I struggled to hold back my tears, but I knew that this had to happen. I wondered how he would respond when I told him that I loved him, and I was shaking with fear of being rejected. "I love you…" I said at last, never losing eye contact with his to-die-for blue eyes.

He gently wiped the tears that escaped and rolled down my cheek with his thumb, "Olivia, I love you too… I always have…"

His hand other hand slid behind my waist, and I wrapped my long fingers around his neck, pulling him into another kiss. Gently, he lay down on top of me, and I smiled into the kiss. He deepened the kiss, his tongue separating my lips. I felt my breath being sucked out of my body, but I didn't dare part from him again. My body tingled with a feeling I could only describe as much needed anticipation. Seconds passed by, and I couldn't fight it any longer.

I separated almost gasping for air, he smiled. "You have no idea how long I wanted to do that…"

"Yes I do Liv…" he gently took my hand, and I sat up once again resting my head on his shoulder and sighing loudly.

The clock over the fireplace ticked noisily, the only sound audible in my entire apartment. I think we were both wondering if what just happened was really real, or just another dream we were desperately hoping to be true. _Did he really just tell me that he loved me?_ I asked myself. _But how could that be true? Who would love you Olivia? You're nothing more than a child of rape, unwanted, broken… but it was true… he really did say those three magical words to you…_My head ached with too many pointless questions.

The hour hand slipped just past the number two, and displayed two-forty in the morning. "Elliot…" I yawned, "I think I'm going to go to bed…"

I got up off the couch and followed him to the door. "I'll cya tomorrow Liv…" he said, placing a quick kiss on my lips.

"Bye El…" I shut the door and walked into my bedroom.

_WHAT ARE YOU DOING?_ My mind screamed back at me. I raced back to the door and threw it open, surprised that Elliot was still standing there.

"I… uh…" he stammered, stunned by my sudden actions.

"El…" I said reaching for his hand, "stay with me tonight?"

He smiled and we went back into the apartment and into my bedroom. I climbed in one side and motioned for him to get in the other side.

"I love you…" he said as I laid my head on his chest.

"I love you too…" the last thing I remembered was smiling as he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me closer.

I woke up next morning and discovered that Elliot was already awake and was watching me sleep, "Good morning…" I smiled.

"Good…" he was cut off by the unexpected slamming of my apartment door that made me jump out of my skin. We stared at each other confused before Kristin came bursting through the door.

"Mother!" she shouted angrily.

"Kris… Kris… what's wrong?"

"Elliot if you'd be a dear… I wish to speak to my mother alone if you don't mind!" she screamed, as Elliot jumped out of bed and gave me a quick goodbye before walking out the door.

"What is it?"

"How dare you lie to me?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You are positively barbaric! I mean honestly! Imagine me, tired as hell and Dr. Yei asks to speak to me…"

_Oh… my… god…SHIT! _I smacked myself in the head, feeling like such an idiot.

"'How are you feeling dear?' 'Any pain yet?' And I'm thinking 'What is this woman talking about!' so I sit there listening to her like an imbecile as she tells me all this crap 'What are you talking about?' I ask her…"

"Kris… Kris sit down… please calm down…"

"Calm down? CALM DOWN! You're not the one whose pregnant mother!" she shouted turning on her heel and hurriedly storming into her bedroom, slamming the door shut.

_How could you be so stupid Olivia? That was definitely not how I wanted her to find out…_

My thoughts were interrupted by the screaming of my cell phone. "Benson," I said, anger in my voice. I listened carefully to what the person on the other line said, and dropped the phone. _Oh my god no…_

A/N: in case y'all did get it, the italics are what people are thinking… anyhoo I'll update soon! Please review! And to all of you that have been reviewing, thank you! There's going to be one more case and then the story's going to be over! Sad I know! But please, pretty please review! My goal is to get at least 30 reviews on this story before it's over!


	7. Vengeance

A/N: well i've had almost 1500 hits on this story, andi thank all of you who have read the story and reviewed whether or not the review was good or bad! And for those of you that haven't left a review, please, please, please, leave one! Even it's 'I hated your story' i live for feedback and i enjoying reading your POV on my writing. Without feedback, i have no desire to write, and it's very important that i hear what you guys think, so please leave a review!

Chapter 7: Vengeance

Saturday January 2

1030 Hours

OLIVIA'S POV

My head pounded in unceasing pain as Elliot and I drove silently to the scene of the crime. Thoughts of a teenage girl in a body bag, beaten, bloody, and broken flashed across my mind as the tires screeched to a halt, leaving behind curved black skid marks. Kristin was the first to jump out of the car, but I forced her to stay with Casey as Elliot and I ducked under the yellow crime scene tape. Just because I was afraid to leave her at home, didn't mean that I was going to let her witness what could possibly be a horrific crime.

The first thing I saw was the body of Natalie Yei lying face down in the sidewalk right outside the door of their house. I watched immobilized until I saw her chest rise and fall, thanking God that she was still breathing.

"One shot to the head… if it was just a millimeter to the right, she'd be dead…" the M.E. Warner told us, snapping me out of my zombie state of mind.

"Well what are we waiting for? This girl needs to go to a hospital now!" I yelled, waving towards the ambulance on scene and those who were clearly not doing their jobs.

It was then that I saw the captain talking to Dr. Yei behind one of the police cars. Her body was shaking in fear as she struggled to answer Cragen's questions without letting tears fall from her eyes.

"Elliot… I'll be right back ok?" I got up off the ground and silently walked over to Dr. Yei.

"Olivia…"

"Captain, I need to talk to Dr. Yei if you don't mind…" he nodded, and walked over to help Elliot with the scene.

"Margie…"

"Olivia how could this happen?" she asked, finally allowing her tears to fall down from her eyes. I pulled her towards me and rubbed her back trying to reassure her, but I knew the damage was already done. Behind me I heard the sound of a stretcher being pulled into the ambulance.

"You better ride with her… I'll meet up with you later… it's going to be alright Margie…" I watched as the blinking red ambulance lights disappeared around the corner.

Quietly I walked back over to the scene where Elliot and Cragen were crouching on the ground. They were helping a CSI lift prints from the sidewalk where Natalie was found. Another woman was taking pictures of the blood spatter to determine where the shooter was standing. I sighed wearily before joining them.

"Anything?"

"A few partials prints, but by the position of them, they're most likely Natalie's…" Elliot stated in almost a whisper.

"Yeah… anything else?" I asked somewhat distractedly.

"Well, by the looks of the blood spatter the shooter shot from about the mailbox…" Cragen said, pointing down the driveway to the mailbox.

"A hit and run?"

"Looks like it…"

"Hey Liv…" Elliot said.

"What do ya got?" I questioned, squatting down beside him.

"A note…"

"Let me see that… _I've been waiting for the day when I'd at last see little Kristin's body motionless on the floor… too bad her poor friend got in the way… you have 24 hours to find me Miss Benson, or your little daughter will be mine… _What the hell is that?"

"I dunno, but we're sending it to the lab for prints…"

"I doubt whoever this person is would be stupid enough to leave his prints on a note that somebody would clearly find."

"Let's go to the hospital Liv… I'm sure Natalie will want Kristin to be there…"

HOSPITAL 1115 Hours

Elliot and I watched as Kristin disappeared into Natalie's room after hearing that she was once again conscious. We turned down the hallway in the opposite direction and stopped at room 257. The big gold letters displaying the number two hundred fifty-seven, seemed like a wall to me. On our side of the door was the man I loved more than any other person in the world, but inside was a woman that I had been friends with for eight years. She was the mother of my daughter's best friend, and the woman who helped my daughter after her attack. Once we opened that door, we would be greeted by a woman engulfed in fear, pain, and rage. I wished that I didn't have to go inside, but nonetheless she was the only witness to her daughter's shooting, and we had to talk to her.

His eyes lingered over me, and I knew that he could sense my fear, the pang of guilt twisting inside my stomach, and the look in my eyes that wondered why this would never stop happening. I was almost surprised when his hand grasped mine. Squeezing his hand tighter, I tried to prove that I was going to be ok, but we both knew that I needed him.

Quietly, I opened the door with the hand that wasn't enveloped in Elliot's. "Margie… Margie… it's me…" she was sitting on a hospital bed, her back turned to the two of us. I nodded to Elliot and silently released his hand, sitting down on the edge of Margie's bed. Her eyes were focused out the window, but I knew what she was looking at wasn't the snow covered trees out the window. She sighed allowing her shoulders to drop. For the first time I noticed that her wrist was closed in a white plaster cast.

"I'm in the hospital everyday… but I never imagined it would be like this…" she told me, her eyes still out the window. I think that she figured that looking me in the eye would make her cry, so I too found something else to look at.

"Margie… I feel so guilty about this… your daughter wasn't supposed to be the one in the hospital… my daughter was the target, and yet here you are… I'm so sorry about this Margie…"

"Oh damn it Olivia! Don't forget what I told you yesterday… none of this is your fault… you can't make someone shot my daughter, just like you couldn't make someone attack yours…" her eyes reverted to mine and I admired how quickly she found her courage.

"Margie… we have evidence suggesting that the person that shot your daughter could be one of Jose's partners who wanted Kristin dead for putting Jose in jail…"

"I thought the situation with Jose was taken care of…"

"So did we…"

"What can I do?"

"The hardest thing you could possibly imagine…"

"What's that?"

"Nothing…"

A/N: sorry that this chapter was rather short, but i have written the next part already and just need to do a little revision! I need to warn you that i'm going to the beach from the 13-21, so i'm going to try really hard to get thisstory wrappedup before then because i can't bring my laptop along. If i don'tfinish before then, for whatever reason, i promise to update as soon as i get back! pleasereview! all you readers are absolutely wonderful!

333 evelien


	8. Guilty

A/N: well I told you I'd update soon! Some of these chapters may be shorter because honestly, I don't want this story to end! But I guess all good things do! Please R&R! I love your reviews! Special thanks go to LawandorderSVUfan, littlesweetcupcake, Chronicleofabutterfly, tia-ballerina, psalm57, Cite Your Source CSI, Ellie, Liz, Kietah-chan, Elizabeth, Squanto, Stephanie, The coolest Peep on the street, Ella and Caden, Anonymous, Rebecca and Chris! I love you guys! And thank you so much for reviewing!

Chapter 8: Guilty

Kristin's POV

Saturday January 2 - Hospital 1130 Hours

I allowed the hospital door to ease open without making a sound, fearing that Natalie would wake. Lying still on a plain white hospital bed, was my best friend who I've known since the mere age of five. Her long brown hair lay scattered across the pillow that matched the bed, IVs sticking out of her arms. I couldn't help but feel guilty for her being in the hospital, _you should be in that bed, not Natalie._ As we were driving in the car, I overheard mum talking to Elliot about a note that they found at the crime scene. First fear ripped through me when I realized that someone was still out there waiting to find me, but within a few seconds guilt was the only feeling left in my body.

"Hey Nat…" I said sitting down beside her in one of the uncomfortable hospital chairs. "I can't believe this happened… Natalie… my mother… my real mother that is… she wasn't a good person… I've never told you about this before, but I know why those men want me dead… and I know why they killed my mother… Natalie, you shouldn't be in bed… that should be me lying there… and I'm so sorry…" My eyes couldn't contain my tears any longer, and I regretted that I showed my weakness in front of my best friend who at this moment needed me to be the strong one. "This is all my fault Natalie… that bullet was intended for me…"

"Oh will you please shut up already?" she pleaded blinking her eyes open.

"Natalie… I… I didn't know you were awake…" I stammered, somewhat embarrassed that she witnessed me breaking down.

"Kris stop blaming yourself… if what you said about your mother is true, then this is her fault, not yours… look at me Kris…"

I lifted my green eyes to meet her gray ones. Natalie was like a sister to me. We spent every moment together and were literally inseparable. Looking in her eyes I just felt so thankful that she was ok. At least she wasn't going to be imparred for life or attack the way I was. I sighed, happy that she was alive.

"Kris, I'm going to be alright ok? And you know as well as I do that your mom and her partner will stop at nothing to catch the guy that landed me in this crap hole of a place! Besides, stop putting everyone else's problems before yours!"

"What do you mean?"

"Kris, nothing else is going to happen to me, but these guys are still out there waiting for you… I'm afraid for you Kris… they could…"

"I know…" I said simply, cutting her off before she could finish her statement with the two words that made me shiver. _They could kill you…_

"Where's my mom?" she asked, quickly changing the subject.

"She's down the hall in room 257, she had to get a cast on her wrist for minor fractures…"

"How did she get fractures?"

"You don't remember?"

"No… what happened?"

"After you were shot she jumped on top of you to shield you from the shooter…"

"Oh my god…"

"Yeah…"

"Can I see her now?"

"Actually I you can't leave until the doctor's let you… but I can get her for you…"

"Thanks Kris…"

I opened the door and smiled once at Natalie, before taking off towards her mother's room. This wing of the hospital was literally barren and if you didn't know that there were patients in those rooms, you wouldn't think anyone would occupy it.

I peered in the window and immediately recognized my mother holding Dr. Yei, who was sobbing silently in her arms. Elliot was leaning against a wall, his eyes told me that he felt like he was intruding.

"Excuse me…" I whispered, opening the door.

"Kristin… what is it?" Dr. Yei asked, wiping tears from her eyes with her jacket sleeve.

"Natalie's awake and she wants to see you…"

"What room is she in?" she demanded, leaping to her feet.

"106…" she nodded and my mother, Elliot and I followed her out the door.

Before Dr. Yei turned the doorknob to room one hundred-six, Elliot's cell phone began to ring. "Stabler… ok… alright… ok…" his eyebrows raised as the person on the other line talked to him. "Are you sure you'd be ok with that Captain? Yeah… yes… ok I will… we're on our way…"

"What did the Captain want?" my mother questioned, nodding to for me to join Dr. Yei in Natalie's room.

"Wait Kristin… Liv, the Captain told me that I should drive you home…"

"Don't tell me he's taking me off the case…"

"No… he wants the two of you to pack up your stuff…"

"What?"

"He wants you to stay somewhere until they catch the man responsible for putting Natalie in the hospital… I was wondering…"

"Yeah?"

"Cragen suggested that the two of you stay with me… and well… I'd like that…"

"Elliot…"

"Yeah?"

"I would love to stay with you but…"

"But what Olivia?"

"I don't want to put your life in danger…"

"Olivia… Liv… look at me…" he grabbed her face in the palms of his hands and I smiled at how in love they were. I had never seemed them act like this before and though most teenagers would find it embarrassing, they're behavior was what I had wished for my entire life.

"Olivia… I would die for you…" _Oh my god…_ I sighed.

1330 Hours

OLIVIA's POV

We had brought the first round of boxes into Elliot's house and collapsed onto the couch. In two hours, we had packed our entire lives into several brown cardboard boxes. Kristin curled up in a chair across from Elliot and me and instantly fell asleep. Elliot took my hand in his and we silently watched her sleep.

"I can't believe we still have another round of boxes to bring back!"

"I know Liv… but don't worry about it… I'll go get them…"

"No Elliot… you stay here… I'm Casey said she was going to help me out anyway…"

"Ok, if you're sure…"

"It's not a problem…"

"You ok Liv?"

"Elliot… we need to find out who's threatening her… these men are serious…"

"Why do they want her dead Olivia? What did she do…?"

"I think there's something she's not telling us…"

"What do you mean Liv?"

"The first time I met her was when her mother died… I noticed something about her… something so… familiar…"

"What do you mean by that?"

"It was that look in her eyes… I remember that look… I may sound crazy but… I think someone's hurt her…"

"You think she's been abused?"

"Yeah… by her mother…"

A/N: another short chapter I know, but my partner in crime gave me advice and told me that I should make them shorter and end with cliffies… yay cliffies! well then… please review! no reviews no writing! lol I do love your feedback though!


	9. Now What?

Chapter 9: Now What?

Author: Evelien Michaels

Rating: PG-13

OLIVIA'S POV

"So…" Casey smiled, placing clear masking tap over the last brown cardboard box.

"So what?" I asked, my tone holding the same jubilance as Casey's.

"What is exactly going on between you and Elliot? I mean…"

"Casey I'm just moving in with him… temporarily…"

"Hun, this doesn't look very temporary to me…"

"Hey don't balme me, it's the Captain's orders after all…"

" 'Captain's orders' oh please… hun you're in looooooooooooooooooooooove!"

"CASEY!"

"Just stating the obvious…. aww…. Lil Olivia an Elliot are in loooooooooove!"

"… you really think he loves me?"

"God what are we, 13 years old? Please… gag me with a frickin spoon already!"

"Shut up!" I said, slapping her on the shoulder, "Come on we have to get these boxes over to Elliot's… we still have some work to do… let me remind you that we are on a time limit…"

"Ok lover girl… let's go…"

"We're here!" Casey called, as we entered the seemingly empty house.

"Elliot? Kristin?" we searched the downstairs floor, looking for the two of them, but they were nowhere to be found.

After awhile we finally heard, "Down here!" coming from the basement and found them discussing Natalie's position and how we could get the power back on our side.

"Hey…" I locked eyes with Elliot's noticing that he was just as upset about this whole odeal as I was. "We brought all the boxes that would fit in my car, but we still have about five or six that we couldn't fit…"

"Why don't Kris and I go get them for you… you and Casey just relax Liv…"

He stood up throwing Kristin her coat and slipping on his own. Before he ventured up the stairs, he touched me lightly on the shoulder and whispered in my ear, "We'll be back in a half an hour…"

I nodded slightly and watched as he followed Kristin up the stairs and out the front door. I didn't think anything was wrong until he started the enginge and pulled out of the driveway.

It has been proven that we all have some snse of foreboding in our brains that gives us sense of future events. I don't know what it was that scared me enough to make my entire body shake, but even when Casey came to my side and brought me out of my trance I didn't feel reassured.

Something was going to happen… and I knew that whatever it was, couldn't be a good thing.

A/N: First of all… let me say HALLEJUAH! it only took FOUR MONTHS for my laptop to be fixed, which means more writing to share! I'm sorry it took sooo long to fix, but it's alive now! WOO! and yes I realize this chapter is like really small, but don't fret, the next chapter is already written! And I love all of you for putting up with all these delays! PLEASE REVIEW! I WILL POST THE NEXT CHAPTER AFTER I GET 5 REVIEWS! I WOULD LOVE TO GET 50 FOR THIS STORY! I WILL LOVE YOU TIL THE END OF TIME!


	10. When Will this be Over?

Chapter 10: When will this be over?

Author: Evelien Michaels

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Kristin and Elliot return to Liv's apartment to complete moving all her stuff out, when they make a shocking discovery.

KRISTIN'S POV

Elliot and I pulled up to the apartment complex, flabbergasted by the amount of people standing outside its doors.

"What's going on?" I asked him, but he shook his head, unsure of the answer.

"Let's just get what we're looking for."

"Excuse me... pardon me..." the two of us pushed our way through the crowd, still uncertain what the commotion was all about.

"Sir you can't go up there." A police officer stopped us before we could enter the building.

"What's the problem here?" Elliot asked, flashing the younger man his badge.

"Sorry officer... there was an accident and I have been told not to let anyone inside."

"What sort of accident?"

"There was a fire in one of the apartment buildings..."

Oh shit...

Elliot and I exchanged glances and I mentally cursed my mother (rest her soul) for dealing with the men who killed her, raped me, shot my friend, and now torched our apartment.

"I have instructions by Captain Cragen of the Special Victims Unit to move this young girl out of her apartment. She's in extreme danger and we need to do this as soon as possible... you understand me?"

"Yes sir..."

"Please radio whoever's in charge here and tell them that we are coming up."

"Yes sir..."

We watched as he pulled the small radio out off his clip and turned his back away from us for privacy. I couldn't make out the exact words he said, but I knew he was following Elliot's instructions and in no time he was nodding for us to come inside.

"By the way sir... which apartment was the fire located in?" Elliot whispered, thinking I was out of ear-shot.

"Room number... 419..."

Oh shit, shit, shit...

We climbed the stairs solemnly, not speaking a word because there was no reason to; I wouldn't know what to say anyway. Nothing prepared me for what I was about to witness; the entire apartment was lost... everything was gone.

My hands ran absently over the photographs on the wall that we hadn't yet packed up. Memories of my first few experiences with Olivia were destroyed. Pictures of us on the day I legally became her daughter, us at the SVU Christmas party last year, summer picnics with the Stablers... they were all lost... proof of happy memories that would never be restored for me. It was like the felicity was drained from my being once again... and I was getting really sick of it...

I watched Elliot from afar, shaking his head as he wove in and out of the various bedrooms and bathrooms. Without realizing what was happening around me, I began to feel tears running down my face and immediately my hands fell down to my stomach. There was a human... a baby growing inside of me... in less than eight months I would be a mother. How could I care for this baby if I couldn't even protect myself? Was my child destined for the same fate I had unfortunately received?

I sighed wiping the tears from my eyes before Elliot knew I was crying. I had to stay strong... for all of us... it wouldn't do anyone any good if my walls crumbled down now.

"You found something?" I whispered, watching Elliot emerge from the kitchen.

"Yeah... it's a note..."

"Well... what does it say?"

"It's um... for you..."

"For me? Who would leave a note for me?"

His eyes fell upon mine... sympathetically, they almost seemed to make an unspoken apology.

"Who is it from Elliot?"

His silence filled the room, seemingly chilling it.

"What does it say?"

"I... I... here..."

He handed the note to me, outstretching his hand toward me like a gingerbread man.

_Miss Benson,_

_Kristin... I'm truly sorry about torching the your apartment... tell the detective you live with that I truly didn't mean any harm to it... I know she worked extra hours to pay for the rent... anyway... I'm sorry about your poor little friend... Natalie I think her name was? She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. You have something I want Kristin... I'm sure you know what that is by now... your mother, Ms. Mathers... she got in the way of my little operation, just like you have... I know that Detective Benson and Stabler are responsible for putting Jose in jail... and that angers me and trust me you don't want me to be angry. I visited Jose yesterday and I told him about your growing child... he told me that you could not have this child... he told me to destroy your child... and there for I must at last make my point. I know where to find you Kristin... and if you care about Detective Benson, you'll agree that her life is more important than your child's. You will meet me at your mother's old apartment in Harlem... you know the spot... don't pull any crap with me Kristin... I know where to find you..._

"It's not signed..."

"Kristin, you're not actually thinking about this are you?"

"Elliot... if I don't go, he's going to come after mum..."

"What's to say he's not going to kill you?"

"Elliot... because of me, my best friend is in the hospital, her mother can't sleep at night, and my mother is afraid to leave me out of her sight... do you really want to live like this, uncertain of what tricks they will pull next?"

"Kristin... this is dangerous, and even if you agree to this... who'll say that this will all be over?"

"Elliot! This is our only lead! How else are we going to get this guy if we don't comply... we may never get a second chance at this... please..."

He sighed heavily, "I'm coming with you..."

"Thank you Elliot... thank you..."

A/N: hehehe! What's gonna happen now! Haha stay tuned, and PLEASE REVIEW MY LOVES!

333 Evelien


	11. Could these really be my last words?

Chapter 11: Could these really be my last words?

Author: Evelien Michaels

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Elliot and Kristin decide to meet the mysterious man who left her the note, as Olivia and the rest of SVU rush to catch up to them before something terrible happens. Goes back and forth between Elliot's POV (yes I'm actually writing in a man's POV) and Olivia's POV. More EO action for my EO fans... haha you know you love it ;-)

ELLIOT'S POV

"Cap... it's Elliot... we're currently after a suspect... no Liv isn't here... yes Kristin's with me... I know what I'm doing Cap... I need you to meet CSU over at Liv's apartment... yes... someone started a fire in it, and we need to know who and how... thanks Cap... I know I'm calling her right now... bye..." I pressed the END button on my cell phone and turned toward Kristin whose eyes were on me.

"Uncle Don thinks it's a bad idea that I'm coming with you, doesn't he?"

"Kristin... he knows why you're here..."

"I'm not a baby Elliot... I'll be ok..."

"I know you're not..."

"Elliot..."

"Yes?"

"The light's green..."

"Oh right..."

I pressed on the gas and sighed knowing that this was it... we only had one chance to catch this guy... we couldn't risk blowing it...

"Can you call your mom for me?"

"Don't you want to talk to her?"

"I'll let you talk to her first..."

I watched Kristin's hands shake as she dialed the familiar number, and I gave her a small smile letting her know that I would do anything to protect her life.

OLIVIA'S POV

"Liv I think you're phone's ringing..." Casey whispered to me, catching me drifting off into space.

"Oh... right..."

I pulled myself off the couch, praying that the call was from Elliot... the two of them were taking a long time, and I was beginning to worry.

"Hello? Hey Kristin... sweety? Sweety what's wrong? Calm down... what... Kristin please, you're not making any sense... you can't do this Kristin! You could get really hurt! Please think about what you're saying..." My daughter was going to be bait in an operation... though I knew it had to be done, I also understood the possible consequences for this... she could be killed... Elliot could be killed... God they both could be killed...

Hot tears formed at the corners of my eyes and rolled softly down my cheeks.

"Kristin..." I choked, "Put Elliot on the phone please... Elliot..."

"_Olivia... I know you're scared, but we have to do this..."_

"Can't you wait for back-up or something Elliot? You have no protection... no one... if something goes wrong... Elliot..."

"_Olivia... I know what I'm doing... we'll be fine, but we have to do this..."_

"Elliot... please... don't leave me... you can't leave me..."

"_Olivia... it's ok... I can't promise that everything is going to go fine... but I promise you that I will do everything I can to protect Kristin... I'm not going anywhere Liv..."_

"Please be careful Elliot..."

"_I will...Olivia..."_

"Yes?"

"_I love you..."_

The line went dead, causing my tears to fall in a heavier stream. Casey hugged me tightly, but even her sisterly embrace couldn't calm me down. For the first time in years, I prayed that God would protect them.

ELLIOT'S POV

I hated hearing Olivia crying on the other line, but I understood the pain she was feeling. My thoughts traced back through the last seven years of our partnership in slow motion. I remembered the first day I met her. She was beautiful, though her eyes held a certain pain that I wished I could have taken away that very first day. I remembered the countless parties we attended with the SVU, and how she always looked stunning in a brand new dress. I recalled dancing with her on many occasions, though at that time we were just friends. I remembered her smile and how her laugh could make me smile stupidly. I remembered how she treated my children like they were her own, and how she comforted me when I learned that I wouldn't be able to spend everyday with them. Looking back on everything, I realized how much happier my life was because she was in it and if I were to die today, I know my life would have been worth living because of her.

"Elliot..."

"Yes?"

"This is it... this is my old house..."

I gripped the small girl's hand as she sighed, letting her know that she wasn't in this alone.

"Just follow my lead..."

She opened the car door and quickly jumped out, walking into the middle of the alleyway searching for the mystery suspect.

I opened my door quietly, trying to keep myself out of his line of view, when I realized that I had no idea where he was. If he saw me here, he would definitely shoot... I had to keep myself hidden for both of our protection.

Kristin stood visibly shaking with fear and wondering if she had done something wrong. That's when I saw him crouching down behind a dumpster at the end of the alley. In his right hand, he gripped a 9mm, which made me squirm.

He began to load the gun, and I realized that he wasn't going to leave without shooting Kristin first. I sprinted from my hiding place behind the car hoping that I could reach her in time.

"Kristin! Kristin get down!"

I shoved her out of his line of fire, covering her body with my own. The last thing I remember hearing was the deafening sound of a bullet being fired toward the two of us.

A/N: wahahahaha! I leave you with another cliffhanger my loves, but if you leave me a pretty little comment I will relieve your pain by giving you another chapter of this FF... so... um... Reviews? please? don't make me cry...

Thanks for reading

333 Evelien


	12. Don't Leave Me Now

A/N: first of all, let me say thank you so so so much! I never expected to get as many reviews as I have! You guys are so awesome! This chapter will be the second to last chapter... I know it's sad but this story has to come to an end sometime... oh and btw, Dick Wolf owns everything in this story... except Kristin, she's mine and if you try to steal her I'll bite you :-D

Chapter 12: Don't leave me now

Author: Evelien Michaels

Rating: PG-13

Summary: After being shot, someone's losing blood, quickly and they may not pull through...

More EO for y'all

KRISTIN'S POV

I waited for the pain to come, but there was none... I then felt something sticky trickling down my leg. Blood... not mine... his blood... Elliot's blood...

"Elliot? Elliot, please wake up!" I squirmed out from underneath him, realizing that his body was limp with unconsciousness. My head snapped toward the shooter, but he was nowhere to be found... _"Why Elliot? I was the target... I was the one they wanted..."_

I quickly took my jacket off, immediately feeling the cold stinging my arms, and applied as much pressure as possible to his shoulder wound. With my free hand, I reached to pull his cell phone off his belt and hurriedly dialed 9-1-1.

"Yes, hello... this is Kristin Benson... I was helping my mother's partner, Detective Stabler, badge number 1375... the suspect fired toward us, and he was hit in the shoulder... we're located in Harlem, in an alleyway at 13th and 4th... thank you..." I hung up the phone and decided that I had to let mum and Cragen know what happened. Dialing the small phone yet again, I waited for someone to pick up.

After two rings, I heard my mum's familiar voice.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey..."

"_Kristin?"_

"It's me..."

"_Are you ok? What happened?"_

"Elliot..."

"_Elliot what?"_

"He... he's been... shot..."

"_Is he ok?"_

"He's unconscious..."

"_Why are you talking to me? Call for a bus!"_

"It's on its way... I'm so sorry..."

"_...Where are you?"_

"Harlem..."

OLIVIA'S POV

To say that we flew across town would have been an understatement. In some areas, Cragen and I found ourselves traveling almost double the speed limit. We had to get to them... if this was really the end... I wanted to be there with him...

"Don't think about that Olivia..."

I felt Cragen's eyes upon me, and felt him lay a paternal hand on my shoulder.

"He'll be ok Olivia... he's just as stubborn as you are..."

"What if he's not? What if he doesn't..."

"Don't think about the 'what if's Olivia... just get to him..."

I nodded, pressing down on the gas petal so hard that I swore my foot could have gone through the bottom of the car.

"You really love him, don't you?"

"...yes..."

At that moment, nothing else mattered. I knew that I could get in serious trouble for telling my Captain that I was in love with my partner... we could be split up... hell we could even lose our jobs, but I didn't care... the only thing on my mind was getting to them...

I looked across at Cragen, noticing a smile on his face, though tears were threatening to fall from my eyes.

"Why are you smiling?"

"I knew it..."

"What?"

"I knew you two would be together..."

"...uh..."

"I'm not mad Olivia... just um... keep this out of the office, ok?"

"Captain... can we...um... finish this conversation later?"

Complete mayhem... a string of police cars with their red and blue lights flashing, cops were everywhere making plans to find the shooter, CSU were running around trying to collect any evidence that hadn't been tempered with, Casey, Fin and Munch were yelling at the others, Kristin still lay on the ground by Elliot stunned with the recent events... but where was the ambulance?

Cragen and I were clearly thinking the same thing, because he began screaming out to the other officers, "Where the hell's the ambulance?"

There was no response, which didn't surprise me at all considering all the noise surrounding us.

I felt like a was in the middle of a war zone with all the chaos... I began pushing my way through the crowd trying to get to my daughter.

"Kristin..."

She sat on the ground with her hand over her stomach, and her eyes wide on Elliot's bleeding body. The sight of him laying there was enough to make me cry, and I motioned to Cragen to get Kristin some help.

"Kristin... why don't we check ya out kid?" Cragen helped her off the macadam, noticing her pained facial expression as she rose to her feet.

_Well things just keep getting better don't they?_

Cragen gave me a knowing glance as I slowly crouched down by the body of the man I loved.

"Elliot... Elliot hang on please... please Elliot... I can't lose you..."

Tears brimmed in my eyes, though I tried to hold them back realizing that other people were watching me.

"Where the hell's the bus?" I yelled toward Fin, who stood by Munch, yelling something incoherent.

"The fucking thing was held up in traffic, but it should be here within a minute or so..."

"We don't have a minute Fin! We've waited long enough already!"

"Calm down Liv..."

"Don't tell me to..."

"Liv! It's here!"

I heaved a sigh of relief when I saw the paramedics come rushing toward me with a stretcher. I followed them as they loaded Elliot up inside.

"Wait!" I screamed, wanting nothing more than to ride along with him, but they were already on their way.

"Olivia..." Cragen appeared at my side, noticing that the ambulance had left me behind. "Kristin's getting checked out, but she'll be fine... we should go get his kids and meet them at the hospital..."

Cragen and I arrived with all four of Elliot's children almost a half an hour later and immediately ran toward the receptionist's desk.

"I need to know which room Detective Elliot Stabler is staying in..." I stated, out of breath.

The kids came to my side, giving the old woman the same concerned expression I did.

"I'm sorry, but he's in surgery right now... he should be out in about an hour or two... Mrs. Stabler, why don't you and your children wait in the waiting room and I'll let someone know you're here..."

"But I'm not..."

"Don't worry, your husband should make a full recovery... I'll go get someone now if you'd like..."

"Um... I... yes... that would be fine..."

Cragen ushered the kids into other room, as I waited for the receptionist to return. Standing in the middle of that hospital with the noise of machines beeping and the commotion of doctors running about, I realized how much I hated hospitals. In fact, they may just be the thing I hated the most. Anytime I had ever been in the hospital was a horrible memory, whether it was dealing with victims or my own experiences as an abused child, I couldn't recall a single memory worth remembering; this was no different. I knew the way doctors acted... "You're 'husband' could pull through" may really mean that he had a 50 percent chance... maybe less...

I'm not exactly sure how long I had stood there staring at the white walls absent mindedly, but soon a doctor approached me, pulling me out of my reverie.

"Mrs. Stabler..."

I didn't even both to correct her, "How is he?"

She smiled, "Don't worry, he'll be out of surgery in about thirty minutes..."

"So... he's going to be ok?"

"Yes... he'll be just fine... his right arm movement may be minimal for a good 4-6 weeks, but he should make a full recovery..."

I sighed, allowing myself to smile, "Thank you doctor..."

"He's one stubborn man..."

"Excuse me?"

"He came to for a moment or so... he keep saying 'Where's Olivia? Is she ok?'"

"Did he um... say anything else?"

"Yeah actually... he wanted to know 'Why the hell am I in a hospital?'"

"Thank you doctor..."

I followed her down to the waiting room, where Cragen sat with the four children in an uncomfortable silence. Instantly, I was greeted by there arms being thrown around me in what can only be described as a "group hug."

"Is daddy ok?" Lizzie asked, her eyes twinkling as they stared into mine.

"Yeah..." I pulled them all closer as tears rolled down my cheeks, "he'll be fine..."

"Why are you crying Livia?" Dickie asked, noticing my tear-streaked face.

"I'm just happy he's ok..."

"Thanks for being here Olivia..." Maureen said, releasing me from her embrace.

"It means a lot to us..." Kathleen added.

"Hey listen to me guys... I'm always gonna be here ok? I love you four like you were my own kids..."

"We love you too Olivia..."

"Besides... I love your father too much to not be here when he wakes up..."

They smiled at each other knowingly, and the five of us spread out across the room.

Now all we could do was wait...

As we lay scattered about the waiting room, I looked down at Lizzie's head in my lap realizing how much love was in this room. These kids were like my own, and at that moment I felt so lucky to have them.

A/N: Well there we go... hope y'all like that one... I think there's gonna be one more chapter after this one... PLEASE REVIEW MY DARLINGS!

333 Evelien


	13. Hello Everyone

Hey everyone, it's Evelien.

I know it's been forever, and if anyone is still interested in this story, let me assure you it hasn't been abandoned.

A lot has happened since my last update. Two people I care very much about were hospitalized. One of whom is practically a mother to me, and the news of her cancer was very sudden and unexpected.

I've been very sidetracked, but now that their health is back on track, I want everyone to know you can expect an update from me shortly.

Thanks to all y'all readers,

Evelien


	14. SHES BACK!

A/N: hey everybody! I hope you didn't forget me, because I sure didn't forget y'all! My friend's mom was released from the hospital yesterday, and hopefully the surgery has removed most of her cancer. I'll be more of a regular on this site now! Please review!

Disclaimer: apparently puppy eyes don't work on Dick Wolf sigh guess I'll have to try something else.

Chapter 13: Happily Ever After?

Wednesday January 5th

OLIVIA'S POV

The sun crept through the blinds, and for a moment I had forgotten where I was. My eyes fell upon the still sleeping form of Lizzie Stabler; we were in the hospital.

Without waking Lizzie, I quietly got up to find someone who could tell me what was going on.

"Excuse me," I said, approaching the receptionist at the front desk, "can you tell me which room Elliot Stabler is in?"

"He may still be in surgery, let me call his nurse for you," she replied, turning away from me.

Ten minutes had gone by.

_Honestly, how long does it take to find a room number? _

Tired of waiting, I cleared my throat to get her attention.

"Oh! I'm sorry, the doctor should see you soon!"

True to her word, the doctor came within minutes to the lobby where I was impatiently tapping my fingernails.

"Mr. Stabler's out of surgery now; I can take you to him," she was sweet, too sweet. Her kindness made me wonder if he was ok. "I must warn you, he may still be a little out of it." She opened the door, revealing a peacefully sleeping Elliot.

I came to his side immediately, taking his hand and ignoring the doctor's ranting.

"He needs his sleep, so make it short," I heard her say.

"Is he gonna be alright?" I asked, peeling my eyes off Elliot and towards her.

"Don't worry Mrs. Stabler, everything will be ok." With that, she shut the door leaving me alone with the man I loved.

I rubbed my thumb over his hand as his crystal eyes opened. "Mrs. Stabler, eh?" he chuckled, his voice still laced with sleep. He didn't know the reason behind the doctor's words, but he sure as hell liked the sound of 'Mrs. Stabler.'

"I swear to God I'll kill you if you ever do that to me again!" My voice became uncontrollably angry as tears formed in my eyes.

"Liv, I'm so sorry… what happened?"

I looked at him incredulously, "You mean you don't remember?"

He shook his head.

"You and Kristin took of without back-up… or my consent for that matter. What the hell's wrong with you?!? She would have died if you didn't block the shot… I thought I lost you."

"Oh Liv, come here." He pulled me into his arms, placing kisses on my forehead. "You'll never lose me Liv… I'll always be with you."

He kissed me tenderly on the lips and I knew in that moment that this was how it was meant to be.

The moment, however, was short lived as a knock on the door interrupted us.

"I'll get it," I told Elliot, kissing him lightly on the lips, "Dr. Yei, is something wrong?"

"I'm sorry…" she shook her head, "We did everything we could but… I'm so sorry Olivia."

"Slow down Margie," I placed my hands on her shoulders, searching her eyes, "what are you talking about?"

"Your daughter…"

OOOOOOO!! Dun dun dun!

Thanks for reading! Press the little button, cuz ya love me J

Ev


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